[.ca] Software Testing and Continuous Quality Improvement, ... (ISBN 0849325242)

Perfect balance of information and techniqies:
You'd have to download over a gigabyte of internet resources, then cross-reference them to come anywhere close to having a resource as valuable as this book. Lewis has taken proven techniques spanning both software testing and SQA, wrapped them into a quality process based on the PDCA model and places all of the information you need to master testing and SQA between the covers of this outstanding book. All you need to add is the ability to think. If you can do that you'll be able to transform the incredible amount of information in this book into action. If you do that I guarantee you that you'll be able to develop a world class quality organization. Of course, you can mine the publicly available resources and sort through them. Before you do, think carefully about how much your time is worth and just how much you can absorb. If you're intelligent enough to understand this book, you'll quickly see that you'll save thousands of manhours. If not, you still need this book because approach will make you think in terms of cost/benefit. The forms and checklists in this book alone are worth many times the price.

Most complete source of SW quality info in one place:
This book represents the most complete and comprehensive approach to total quality of any I've read on either software testing or software quality assurance. Highlights include: - A structured quality cycle based on Plan-Do-Check-Act. This cycle is the foundation of continuous improvement, which is the theme of the book. - Complete description of testing techniques - in this respect the book is an encyclopedia for software test professionals and a definitive reference. - Comprehensive resource for forms and checklists (I wish these were also provided in soft copy on a CD ROM or author's web site, but they are not). - Full view of metrics across every aspect of the development life cycle. In the same manner that the testing techniques are encyclopedic, the metrics are also an encyclopedia for SQA professionals. I've used this book as a reference, and it had a heavy influence on a reference chart a colleague and I developed for depicting life cycle key metrics. It does not confine itself to testing alone, and in fact, has something for production services and service delivery professionals, as well as project managers involved with large scale development and implementation projects. You would have to buy at least a dozen books or download thousands of documents off the Internet to get the information contained between the covers of this book.

I was not that impressed:
I bought this book based on the previous reviews, and I am disappointed in my purchase. The book contains alot of good information about what should go into a quality organization. And preaches how quality is more than testing. And lists every possible form of testing technique. This is great, but it is all information that you can find on the internet for free. The book does not go into enough detail to explain how to put any one technique to use. The book lists many possible metrics that you can report at the end of a testing phase, but does not define how to perform that type of analysis. Software Testing and Continous Quality Improvement is useful for telling you what in general needs to be done to create quality projects, and it gives a definition of each step. But quickly glosses over how it should be done. The book is much more like a testing glossary than a bible. You will find a whole bunch terms and techniques that can be used in SQA, but if you are not already familiar with them you will have to buy another book.

A Testers Dream:
After reading Software Test and Continual Process Improvement, I am impressed by the breadth and depth of William Lewis' test and quality process coverage. I recommend his book to anyone who is involved in the software development life cycle, including Project Managers, System Analysts, and IT Directors. Mr. Lewis' book is particularly relevant those of us who must reduce development costs while meeting our customers' maturing expectations. Times have changed; financial restrictions prevent using development resources to correct software defects. Initiating the prevention processes outlined in Software Test and Continual Process Improvement will boost project efficiency and product value. My suggestions for improvement: If Mr. Lewis left out the vendor references (in Sections IV and VI), then his book would be less vulnerable to obsolescence. More emphasis on how requirement and test management tools map to each other would strengthen the same sections. It's naive to assume that a book on software test and quality can describe all the components and nuances of thorough testing. Software Test and Continual Process Improvement comes closer than any other book I've read to describing effective end-to-end software quality interventions. It's the software test compendium to hold on to.

A Testers Dream:
After reading Software Test and Continual Process Improvement, I am impressed by the breadth and depth of William Lewis' test and quality process coverage. I recommend his book to anyone who is involved in the software development life cycle, including Project Managers, System Analysts, and IT Directors. Mr. Lewis' book is particularly relevant those of us who must reduce development costs while meeting our customers' maturing expectations. Times have changed; financial restrictions prevent using development resources to correct software defects. Initiating the prevention processes outlined in Software Test and Continual Process Improvement will boost project efficiency and product value. My suggestions for improvement: If Mr. Lewis left out the vendor references (in Sections IV and VI), then his book would be less vulnerable to obsolescence. More emphasis on how requirement and test management tools map to each other would strengthen the same sections. It's naive to assume that a book on software test and quality can describe all the components and nuances of thorough testing. Software Test and Continual Process Improvement comes closer than any other book I've read to describing effective end-to-end software quality interventions. It's the software test compendium to hold on to.