If you’ve worked in the software industry, chances are you’ve encountered words and phrases that you did not understand. I certainly have. So to help make sure we’re all on the same page (that means common understanding), I’ve decided to start a running thread of some of the more common slang terms that apply to software testing. Of course, this list will be woefully inadequate without your input, so please add your slang terms in the comment section below.
Here’s a few off the top of my head, as well as some that I found in this Quora thread:
Dogfooding: When a company tests its own software internally before releasing to beta
Low hanging fruit: Easy tasks that can be completed in short order
WAG: Wild ass guess
SWAG: Scientific wild ass guess
Staging: A development enviroment; one level before production
Automagically: Describes something that occurs in software that is either too complicated to explain, or the person describing the process really has no clue how it works
Quick and Dirty: A quick and simple solution to an otherwise complicated problem
Showstopper: A bug that makes software unusable
Brown-bagger: A very embarrassing bug found soon after release
Whack-a-mole: The practice of repeatedly getting rid of a bug, only to have it continually reappear
Drink the Kool-Aid: Lacking objectivity
Heavy lifting: Difficult and challenging work
SoLoMo: Social, location and mobile – testing components of many mobile apps
Burndown: a chart that is a graphical representation of work left to do versus time
FUBAR: F#@cked up beyond all recognition
PEBKAC: Problem exists between keyboard and chair (good one John Montgomery)
RTFM: Read the F#$cking manual
Fast-track: To speed up a process
Like I said, I’m certain that I’ve left out 99.99% of all the great testing slang terms. So please, pick up the slack (help me out) in the comment section below.
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