J-01
Registration
A new account created through the form a visitor actually sees.
What is exercised
- required and optional fields, and the rule each one claims to enforce
- the wording of every validation message, against the rule behind it
- where a refusal is announced, and whether the field it belongs to takes focus
- the confirmation email arriving at a test address
- the first sign-in with the credentials just set
Written up as failed when
an account is created that cannot then be signed into, a message states a rule the field does not enforce, a refusal is announced somewhere the person filling the form cannot see it, or the confirmation never reaches the test address.
J-02
Sign-in and password recovery
Getting back in, including the path taken when the password has gone.
What is exercised
- sign-in with correct credentials, and with each half of the pair wrong
- the reset request, the message on screen and the email that follows
- the reset link: used once, used twice, and used after it has expired
- signing in with the new password, and with the old one
Written up as failed when
the old password still works after a reset, a reset link can be spent twice, or the screen tells a stranger which half of the pair was wrong.
J-03
Search
Finding something, finding nothing, and what the page says in each case.
What is exercised
- terms that match, terms that match nothing, and terms that match everything
- punctuation, accented characters, trailing spaces and very long queries
- paging through results and coming back to where you were
- the empty state: what it says and what it offers next
Written up as failed when
a term that exists in the catalogue returns nothing, an empty result is presented as an error, or paging loses the query.
J-04
Filters and sorting
Narrowing a list, combining the narrowings, and undoing them.
What is exercised
- each filter on its own, then in combination
- the result count against the filters that produced it
- clearing one filter without clearing the rest
- whether the address bar carries the state, and whether a shared link restores it
Written up as failed when
two filters together return more than either alone, clearing one clears them all, or a copied link opens the list unfiltered.
J-05
Forms
Enquiry, contact, upload and application forms, field by field.
What is exercised
- every field against the rule it states, with valid and invalid input
- completing the form by keyboard alone, and the order focus moves in
- what survives an error: the values already typed, and the position on the page
- what the page claims after submission, and whether anything actually left the browser
Written up as failed when
an error clears what was typed, a required field can be skipped, or the page reports a message as delivered when nothing was sent.
J-06
Booking
Choosing a slot, holding it, changing it and giving it back.
What is exercised
- availability shown in the list against availability at confirmation
- the same slot taken in two browser sessions at once
- time zones and daylight saving, where the site shows times to a customer
- changing a booking, and cancelling it
Written up as failed when
one slot can be booked twice, the confirmation names a different time from the one chosen, or a cancelled slot is not offered again.
J-07
Checkout in sandbox
The basket and the payment step, run against the provider’s test facility.
What is exercised
- basket contents, quantities, removal and the total that follows from them
- promotion codes: valid, expired, and applied twice
- delivery and billing addresses, including addresses that differ
- the payment step with the provider’s published test cards, including the ones that decline
Written up as failed when
a declined test card produces an order, the total at confirmation differs from the basket, or an abandoned attempt leaves an order behind.