ALT-1 How to become a Software Qa Expert
The word "expert" could be interpreted a million different ways, but for the sake of argument, let's just say an expert is one who has experience and skills in his or her specific field - this one being Software Quality Assurance.
To become an expert in any field, one must put in the time and effort in actually performing the job, task, or whatever it is they have set out to do. In software testing, the best teacher is experience. The more you use software, the more you will learn where to spot new "bugs." Finding software defects is, ultimately, what a tester strives to accomplish.
Where do you start? That all depends on your education, experience, and skill-set. If you have no degree and only experience, like myself, you can surely get your foot in the door as a Help Desk Rep, troubleshooting software defects reported by a client. This is how I got started in software quality assurance. Looking at the software from this perspective is not only a great teaching tool, but it also helps you see what the client sees. In this phase of testing, commonly known as User Acceptance Testing, you attempt to use the software in scenarios that are used by the client. In some cases, the client may even supply the scenarios and their own data. This is the most ideal of situations. They may also elect to test the software. This could also be called "beta" testing.
Another good resource for learning the lingo of SQA work is to purchase some good books. I prefer Amazon, as I can find used books really cheap. I can also get some good reviews before I buy. A lot of the time you can even get samples of books on Amazon. If the book is worth anything you should get some real-world examples within it's pages. Theoretical concepts are wonderful, but if you don't have something to compare it to in application/use, then it's almost pointless even reading it. For example, I could theorize that clicking the right mouse button on the Windows(R) Start button a thousand times in a row will produce a "blue screen of death" error; however, without actually performing this task, who knows what might happen? In addition, it's not applicable to using the operating system. Who is going to click the Start menu a thousand times in a row? If you do decide to try this test, I will not be held liable for any system damage, and most certainly not held responsible for your psychiatric evaluation.
After eight years in SQA, I can say that I am far from being an expert, but every day I learn something new and that's the greatest part of the job. I never get bored!
Good luck!
