Exploratory Testing Heuristics and Test Oracles 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does the acronym 'FEW HICCUPS' primarily help exploratory testers identify?
- A set of session time management guidelines
- Test oracle heuristics for recognizing problems in a product (Correct answer)
- Charter writing templates for test sessions
- Defect severity classification criteria
Correct answer: Test oracle heuristics for recognizing problems in a product
FEW HICCUPS (Familiar, Explainability, World, History, Image, Comparable Products, Claims, User Expectations, Product, Standards) is a set of consistency-based test oracle heuristics used to recognize when software behavior is problematic.
Question 2: In exploratory testing, a 'test oracle' is best described as:
- An automated tool that generates test cases
- A mechanism for determining whether a test has passed or failed (Correct answer)
- A senior tester who approves defect reports
- A database of pre-approved expected outcomes
Correct answer: A mechanism for determining whether a test has passed or failed
A test oracle is any mechanism — human, document, system, or heuristic — used to determine whether the actual output of a system matches what was expected.
Question 3: Which heuristic in HICCUPPS involves comparing the product under test against competing or similar products?
- History
- Image
- Comparable Products (Correct answer)
- Claims
Correct answer: Comparable Products
The 'Comparable Products' heuristic involves benchmarking the product against similar or competing products to identify differences that may indicate defects.
Question 4: When using the 'History' oracle heuristic, a tester primarily compares:
- The current product version against previous versions (Correct answer)
- Test results against industry compliance standards
- Actual output against user documentation
- Current defects against archived bug databases
Correct answer: The current product version against previous versions
The History heuristic uses prior versions of the product as a reference point, allowing testers to detect regressions or unexpected behavioral changes in newer releases.
Question 5: The 'Claims' oracle heuristic involves comparing the product's behavior against:
- Internal source code comments
- Marketing materials, manuals, and stated requirements (Correct answer)
- Competitor product feature lists
- Historical defect frequency data
Correct answer: Marketing materials, manuals, and stated requirements
The Claims heuristic checks whether the product fulfills all stated claims found in its documentation, marketing copy, help files, and formal requirements.
Question 6: A 'blind oracle' problem in testing occurs when:
- Testers lack domain knowledge to evaluate the application
- There is no reliable reference to determine whether observed behavior is correct (Correct answer)
- Automated tools cannot detect visual rendering defects
- The tester is unfamiliar with the testing environment
Correct answer: There is no reliable reference to determine whether observed behavior is correct
A blind oracle problem arises when there is no clear mechanism or reference available to judge whether the system's actual output is correct or incorrect.
Question 7: The HICCUPPS mnemonic (as described by Michael Bolton and James Bach) includes which of the following as one of its oracle heuristics?
- History, Image, Comparable Products, Claims, User Expectations, Product, Procedures, Standards (Correct answer)
- History, Implementation, Code, Claims, Users, Products, Processes, Systems
- Heuristics, Integration, Compatibility, Claims, Usability, Performance, Portability, Security
- History, Interface, Correctness, Compatibility, Usability, Performance, Portability, Standards
Correct answer: History, Image, Comparable Products, Claims, User Expectations, Product, Procedures, Standards
HICCUPPS stands for History, Image, Comparable Products, Claims, User Expectations, Product, Procedures, and Standards — a widely used set of consistency-based test oracles in exploratory testing.
Exploratory Testing Heuristics and Test Oracles 1
What does the acronym 'FEW HICCUPS' primarily help exploratory testers identify?