Define – Use testing – An example

Abstract

Variables plays significant role in programming and they ease programmers to write their programs flexibly. Variables are used to represent the data in a program. On executing a program, the variables are replaced with the real time values and hence it creates a possibility for a program to process different set of data. They are most predominant ones that involve in computation and bear the intermediate or final values in a program. These values are good enough in deciding the flow of the program and hence there is a necessity for analyzing flows. From the software tester’s perspective, there grows a need to analyze and test those variables structurally. Data-flow testing is a white-box based testing technique that utilizes control flow and data flow through the program for testing. There are two main forms of data flow testing called as define/use testing and slice-based testing. This paper gives a focus on define/use based testing where it uses simple rules that aids in ensuring whether all the variables are defined and used at the appropriate points within the program. It helps the tester in chalking out the values of a variable, recording them and can trace the changes in values within the program. It is done by using a concept of a program graph, which is closely related to the path testing, selected on a specific variable.