User Interface Testing - Interface testing strategy

The user interface model is reviewed to ensure that it conforms to customer requirements and to other elements of analysis model. During testing, focus is shifted towards application specific aspects of user interaction as they are manifested by interface syntax and semantics.

The goal of interface testing is to:
- uncover errors related to specific interface mechanism.
- uncover errors in the way interface implements semantics of navigation, web application functionality or content display.

Objectives that should be achieved are:
- Interface features are tested to ensure that design rules, aesthetics, and related visual content are available for user without error.
- Individual interface mechanisms are tested in a manner that is analogous to unit testing.
- Each interface mechanism is tested within the context of a use case or navigation semantic units for a specific user category.
- The complete interface is tested against selected use cases and navigation semantic units to uncover errors in the semantics of the interface.
- The interface is tested within a variety of environments to ensure that it will be compatible.

Usability testing evaluates the degree to which users can interact effectively with the web application and the degree to which the web application guides user actions, provides meaningful feedback, and enforces a consistent interaction approach. Usability tests are designed by a web engineering team, but the tests themselves are conducted by end users.

Steps to be followed are :
- define a set of usability testing categories and identify goals for each.
- design tests that will enable each goal to be evaluated.