--- title: "Test Case Vocabulary" slug: "test-case-vocabulary" description: "You constantly build mental models day-to-day as part of your work, rest and play. So, how many mental models did you already make this morning or even this week?" tags: ["Art of Modelling", "Learning Portal", "Get Started", "Test Modeller"] updated: 2023-01-26T11:31:42Z published: 2023-01-26T11:31:42Z --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://knowledge.curiositysoftware.ie/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Test Case Vocabulary ## 1.1 About the Art of Modelling [Embedded content](https://www.youtube.com/embed/QU8T3BnvOWM?&wmode=opaque&rel=0) --- ## 1.2 A Baseline Grammar Whether a developer, business analyst or tester you are no doubt an end-user, you constantly build mental models day-to-day as part of your work, rest and play. So, how many mental models did you already make this morning or even this week? [Embedded content](https://www.youtube.com/embed/TgqWy790uGw?&wmode=opaque&rel=0) Stepping back, Models have generally been the basis for software design since testing existed, and just as mental models adapt on-the-fly best-practice modelling blends individual thought into collaborative work. A deeper dive, then, into the baseline grammar for best practice modelling, we present a basic flow in the context of an ATM transaction. From that, the best practice when modelling out a systems behaviours leads to teams being more tactical in approach. To reiterate: tactically creating Models that use baseline grammar: nodes, Task Blocks, Conditions, considering both an invalid plus valid End Node, use best-practice modelling to sharpen & share diverse thinking with teams to model out and derive effective Test Cases. --- ## 1.3 Enable Exploratory Modelling No matter the system under test (SUT), modelling is more broadly concerned with enquiring, applying and informing, and is closely aligned to evolving your teams’ intelligences. This enquiring, applying and informing helps focus team intelligences and synchronizes effort & motivations around Test Design and Generation. [Embedded content](https://www.youtube.com/embed/FjgmTkElO8Q?&wmode=opaque&rel=0) To benefit from team intelligences around test design and generation, be sure first to make early investigations which will ultimately transform good individual contributions into an aligned collaborative effort. Such early investigations of a system with aligned collaborative effort, be it around test design and generation of data combinations, user interface journeys or exposing complexity, the outcome enables exploratory modelling, one that’s iterative. Stepping back, let’s define exploratory Modelling relative to the process of enquiring, applying and informing. Around enquiring orbits the idea of imperfect sources of knowledge from which a perspective can be decided as a leaping off point. The main question being: what are your main concerns? Then comes Modelling out that enquiry from which you can adjust test cases according to the coverage to reveal complexity, ambiguity, or gaps. This helps flush out anomalies and challenges the sources of knowledge to produce better run results and test execution. So best practice includes the need to enquire, model, inform and apply to derive effective test design and generation that suits the diversity of thinking within your team. A Model is a canvas and the Flow that is built onto it. There are several types of Model, some of which display different tabs and tools on the toolbar in Quality Modeller. A Task is an activity performed either by a user, or internally by the system. It is also used for performing test data assignments. A Condition marks a fork in the paths through a systems logic, for example a decision or a point where data can be entered. To use one, drag it from the Actions panel onto the Model canvas. The Condition itself does not have any decision-making action to decide which paths are followed, use Rules and Tags in the Nodes immediately following the Condition. The End Node is the event that terminates the model. To use one, drag it from the Actions panel onto the Model canvas. There can be more than one End Node, each controlling for a unique outcome.The journey through the Flow ends at an End Node. Where a Model is used as a Subflow within another Model, the End Nodes become the outward connection to the master Model. Test cases are equivalent to paths through the model of a system under test. They are generated automatically from a model, with or without test data and test automation associated with them. Test Modeller has coverage techniques using advanced algorithms to generate the smallest set of test cases needed to test given features with a required level of rigour. Modelling or modelling systems or functions is the main function of Modeller. Modelling or system modelling is the use of models to conceptualize and construct systems in business and IT development. A common type of systems modelling is function modelling, with specific techniques such as the Functional Flow Block Diagram and BPMN Diagrams. ## Related - [The Art of Modelling](/the-art-of-modelling.md) - [Modelling UIs](/modelling-uis.md) - [Model Common Understanding](/model-common-understanding.md) - [Coverage in Test Case Design](/coverage-in-test-case-design.md) - [Form, Cause and Change](/form-cause-and-change.md) - [The Art of Modelling Test Approaches](/the-art-of-modelling-test-approaches.md)