testinglike

Testinglike is a term used in software testing discourse to describe a mindset and set of practices that treat testing as an ongoing, integrated activity rather than a separate phase. It emphasizes that testing should accompany design, coding, configuration, and deployment, and that every action can be an opportunity to verify assumptions and surface defects.

Origins and usage: As a neologism, testinglike lacks formal standardization and appears mainly in blogs, training materials, and online discussions. Its meaning varies, but it generally signals an approach that blends exploration, verification, and feedback, incorporating elements such as exploratory testing, lightweight automation, and risk-based thinking into everyday work. In practice, practitioners may use testinglike as a reminder to write tests early, reason about failure modes, and maintain a rapid feedback loop with stakeholders.

Principles: Key principles include continuous validation, shift-left thinking, maintaining testability in design, and using automation to amplify human judgment rather than replace it. It also encourages flexible testing techniques that adapt to changing requirements and user needs.

Practices: Common practices associated with testinglike include designing tests from user journeys, conducting short exploratory sessions, creating living checklists, and instrumenting systems to observe behavior in production-like environments.

Criticism and limitations: Critics argue that the term is vague and risks conflating multiple distinct methodologies. Without clear guidance, it may overlap with established concepts such as exploratory testing, test-driven development, and shift-left testing.

See also: See also software testing, exploratory testing, test automation, shift-left testing, and test-driven development.