Where excited testers go wrong?

Hi Reader,

Thank me for this post, not that I am sure this is going to be interesting and informative to all readers but for dropping 2 posts to write this one, as I felt this makes more sense to you.

"Pradeep, what do you mean by excited testers?, I have not heard of any such classification"

Yea, most testers you see around you are excited testers and I would want to give some valid data which may make you think "Where are excited testers going wrong?".

Before all that, why dont you people ask me "Pradeep, what is excitement?"

Excitement, according to me, is a state of mind or heart which makes a person feel guilty later for revealing information that was not supposed to. ( in the context of what I am going to explain below)

_ Where excited testers go wrong? _

Ah before I start sharing gyaan let me tell you that, I am not the first person to have thought of this but got a hint from a book Learning Software Testing by Cem Kaner, Jack Falk and Hung but I did carry forward a small research and experiments about what I you may read below.

You must have attended an interview or conducted one by now, if you are a tester working in any organization and you must have come across one question for which you answered with a lot of excitement. Can you take a guess, honestly without peeking below?

"Can you give an example of an excellent bug you found in the recent past?"

Waiting for that moment to show how good testers we are, many of us answered the question and by chance, we may would have got a job in that organization and may even be reading this post using the organizations PC.

What is wrong in answering a question in an interview?

Yes, it is wrong to answer such questions because you are revealing confidential information. If you think in a stupid way that "If by not answering such a question, What if I loose the job opportunity, time for you to read and understand this post.

Every bug you find in a product you are working is a confidential information and you must have signed an Non Disclosure Agreement which may have put you liable for revealing information about the product you are working.

Why a bug is confidential information?

Assume, you are working for a mobile phone company and you are testing Multimedia feature of a particular mobile phone. A version of a the mobile you are working has been released to the market and you happen to attend an interview from one of the competitor.

Being naive, if an interviewer asks "What is the most interesting bug the phone you have tested has and how did you find it?"

If you reveal the information and say you are not hired, it gives an edge to your competitor by marketing his product comparing it with the bug you have revealed to him/her.

Also, when you leave an organization, you are aware that your colleagues, friend or girl friend is still working in that company. You should take care to ensure they do not loose their job because of the fall of a company's reputation. Moreover, all bugs cannot be fixed due to limitations in the processor or some other limitation and hence the company you are working for is at stake if you reveal it.

"Pradeep, how do I tackle such a question and still ensure I get a job?"

If I were you, I would answer "This is an interesting question and makes me think a lot. The first thing I am able to remember is the NDA I have signed in that company, which dis allows me for revealing such an info. Can you ask a question which does not affect such parameters?"

"Moreover, if you hire me, you can be assured that the next time I am looking for a job, I would not reveal any confidential information about your company/product/technology.

This will make the person who asked the question feel guilty, correct his mistake and give another good reason to hire you.

"Thanks Pradeep, what are the other ways a tester reveals confidential information?"

That is a good question from you. They reveal confidential information by asking questions on the project/product you are working to a group/forum where there are other testers, developers... Also, word of mouth is known to spread fire and be cautios when you speak about your product to other testers you meet outside the organization.


"Pradeep, are all bugs confidential?"

Most of them, yes.

"Pradeep, does this restrict us to discuss about the product/technology we are working to someone?"

No, not always, but ensure you give them examples and not the clear picture.

For example -

Assume, I want to ask you that "I found a bug in the phone I am testing, whenever I try to give a missed call to someone, I see my phone vibrates until you power cycle the phone. Is there any other way to reproduce this bug?"

It is better to ask it in this way "Do you think a mobile phone software will get into an infinite loop and keep doing an operation which irritates the user? Can you suggest some ways of reproducing it in multiple ways taking your own example?"

Also, be smart, in answering a question about a product which you do not know, in an interview, by telling "Well, that touches the confidential info which I guess, I am not supposed to reveal" at your own risk of the job. :-P

_ End of _ Where excited testers go wrong? _

"When a tester gets excited, he reveals more than what he could reveal after boozing"

Regards,

Pradeep Soundararajan
pradeep.srajan@gmail.com

Disclaimer: The bug I have mentioned above, is my own imagination and any co incidence with your phone/company product's bug is surprizing, to me. There is no confidential information in this post pertaining to any company, I am and was associated with. I am not responsible if you loose a job opportunity for not answering such a (stupid) question asked in an interview you may attend. Catch me highly responsible, if you turn ethical after reading this post.