Issue #180 : Software Testing Notes
Exploratory testing principles, test leadership advice, and AI’s role in QA
Hello there! 👋
Welcome to the 180th edition of Software Testing Notes, a weekly newsletter featuring must-read content on Software Testing. I hope this week has been good for you so far.
This week, we will learn about:
Exploratory testing principles, test leadership advice, and AI’s role in QA
Selenium 4 updates, DOM-based AI verifications, and Issues of the using Page Object Model
Load testing with Gatling, SQL injection prevention
and much more…
✨ Featured
How BrowserStack's AI Agents Turn PRDs into Automated Tests in Minutes
Upload your PRD or user story and let the Test Case Generator Agent turn it into detailed, structured test cases in seconds, cutting test planning time by over 90%. Then, the Low-Code Authoring Agent picks it up and converts those cases into automated tests 10x faster, without writing a single line of code.
📚 Testing
The Best Testing I Could by James Thomas
What is good exploratory testing, really? James Thomas dives into the mindset behind exploratory testing as a principled practice rather than just a technique. The article challenges testers to constantly re-evaluate priorities, apply judgment, and aim for the best testing possible with the time and context they’re given.
7 Tips for Your First Test Manager Mission by Emna Ayadi
If you are stepping into a Test Manager role, this post is for you. Emna Ayadi shares few insightful tips, from defining your responsibilities early to communicating clearly and aligning on product goals, it’s a practical guide for your successful test leadership journey.
Quality Coaching Scenario: This code won’t take tests by Callum Akehurst-Ryan
In this thoughtful guide, Callum explores how quality coaches and QA professionals can support teams working with untestable legacy systems by shifting from “best practices” to pragmatic realities by flipping the testing pyramid and starting with end-to-end characterization tests.
What AI Looks Like from the QA Seat by Güven Şeker
Is AI replacing testing? Probably not. Güven Şeker shares a thoughtful piece reflecting about how AI is amplifying tasks such as generating smarter test data to surfacing hidden risks by being a tireless teammate, not replacement.
Testing Ain’t Clicking Buttons — It’s Surviving Production Fires with Grace by ABINESH S
I liked Abhinesh’s hilarious style of explaining what we QA professionals really do. A self reminder to us that we are not here to fill the checkboxes. Testing is the early-warning system and the product’s safety net.
🔍 More Articles
⚙️ Automation
Does This Look Right To You, AI? by Gleb Bahmutov
A really thoughtful post by Gleb Bahmutov exploreing how AI, when given proper product feature descriptions, can reliably verify if a web application behaves as expected — not by guessing, but by checking the actual DOM output.
MCP servers - how can we test them? by Adam Pajda
Wanna learn how to test MCP server? Adam Pajda shares how to test MCP servers by mocking HTTP responses to validate JSON-RPC behavior and edge cases without needing full LLM toolchains.
Mastering Java Exception Handling: From Tip Calculator to Real-World Selenium Automation by Kshitij Sharma
This post from Kshitij Sharma offers a hands-on intro to Java exceptions. The article walks through both checked and unchecked exceptions with real-world examples, including a Selenium-based test example.
A Practical Guide to Key Selenium 4 Changes: Actions Class, Fluent Wait, and DesiredCapabilities by Nitish Dwivedi
If you're still using Selenium 3, Nitish Dwivedi shares few reasons to upgrade it to the Selenium 4 with side-by-side code comparisons and TestNG integration tips.
Beyond the Page Object Model by Shubham S.
The Page Object Model has long been seen as the gold standard in UI testing, but this article by Shubham S. challenges that notion by revealing its hidden complexity, and advocates for a more functional approach.
🔍 Test Automation
💨 Performance
Load Testing: Gatling and Scala Practices for Enterprise Applications by Pavadaran Pathmaranjan
Pavadaran Pathmaranjan shows how simulate real user journeys using Gatling and Scala by modeling workflows, using smart session management, thread-safe data distribution, and dynamic request templating.
🔍 Performance Testing
🔒 Security
Understanding SQL Injection: The Classic Web App Attack by Aditya Pidurkar
Aditya breaks down how SQL Injection works with real-world examples, the different types and practical steps you can take to prevent it using parameterized queries, input validation, and proper database permissions.
🔍 More Security Testing Articles
✨ Featured
How BrowserStack's AI Agents Turn PRDs into Automated Tests in Minutes
Upload your PRD or user story and let the Test Case Generator Agent turn it into detailed, structured test cases in seconds, cutting test planning time by over 90%. Then, the Low-Code Authoring Agent picks it up and converts those cases into automated tests 10x faster, without writing a single line of code. Try for free!
🛠️ Resources & Tools
MySQL Transactional tests — This library to allow implementation of transactional tests working with MySQL.
CursorChat Downloader — A VS Code extension that lets you export and view your Cursor AI chat history, browse through your past conversations, view code snippets, and save chat histories from all your workspaces.
ShareX — An open source screen capture, file sharing, and productivity tool, with different capture methods, annotation tools, GIF recording, support for 80+ destinations, among many other features.
📝 List of Software Testers
Do you create content around Software Testing ? Submit yours blog details here and I will add it to the list.
🎁 Bonus Content
📌 OTHER INTERESTING STUFF
⭐ LAST WEEK'S MOST READ
The blueprint that took me from Junior QA to Test Manager by Jayateerth Katti
Milliseconds Make Millions: Turning Playwright Tests into Performance Audits by João Coelho
UI Testing Locators Guide: How to Write Stable and Maintainable Selectors by Sergey Shukalovich
😂 And Finally,
AI Went Rogue and Deleted Production Database Then Hid It And Lied About It 😱
📨 Send Me Your Articles, Tutorials, Tools!
Wrote something? Send links via Direct Message on Twitter @TheTestingKit (details here). If you have any suggestions for improvement or corrections, feel free to reply to this email.
Thanks to everyone for subscribing and reading!
Happy Testing!
Pritesh(@priteshusdadiya)
AI’s role in QA is real, but exploratory testing is the skill it can’t replace yet. A model can generate test cases fast, but exploratory testing is really about a tester’s judgment for where the app is likely to break based on context nobody wrote down. That instinct is still very human.