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Acceptance Test Plan

Using Agile development, a product manager typically writes "Stories" about how the users interact with a system. These Stories are then converted to an Acceptance Test Plan (ATP) by the developer using a formal grammar called "Cucumber Format".

Generative AI is VERY good at writing ATPs! A well-written ATP typically saves an organization $50 and even more if the developers are non-native English speakers.

Sample Prompt

We are creating a new website to allow people to
register for demos with their email.  Please write
an acceptence test plan for the registration form
using cucumber format.

Sample Response

Creating an Acceptance Test Plan (ATP) in the Cucumber format involves writing scenarios in Given-When-Then steps, which describe both the setup, the action, and the expected outcome for each feature being tested. Here's an ATP for registering new users on your site, which will include tests for both successful registrations and handling of common errors.

Feature: User Registration

Scenario: Successfully register a new user

  • Given the user is on the registration page
  • When the user enters a valid username, email, and password
  • And submits the registration form
  • Then the user receives a confirmation email
  • And the user is redirected to the welcome page

Scenario: Registration with an already taken username

  • Given the user is on the registration page
  • When the user enters a username that is already taken
  • And fills in the rest of the form correctly
  • And submits the registration form
  • Then the user sees an error message indicating the username is already taken

Scenario: Registration with an invalid email address

  • Given the user is on the registration page
  • When the user enters an invalid email address
  • And fills in the rest of the form correctly
  • And submits the registration form
  • Then the user sees an error message indicating the email is invalid

Scenario: Registration with a weak password

  • Given the user is on the registration page
  • When the user enters a password that is too weak
  • And fills in the rest of the form correctly
  • And submits the registration form
  • Then the user sees an error message indicating the password is too weak

Scenario: Registration form submitted with missing fields

  • Given the user is on the registration page
  • When the user submits the registration form with one or more fields missing
  • Then the user sees error messages indicating which fields are required

Additional Tips for Effective ATPs

  • Clarity and Detail: Ensure that each step is clear and detailed enough so that anyone in the team can understand what needs to be done and what is expected without requiring additional explanation.
  • Edge Cases: Consider adding scenarios for edge cases, such as attempting to register with special characters in the username, or input fields exceeding maximum length.
  • Security and Compliance: Include scenarios that ensure data is being handled securely and in compliance with relevant regulations, such as GDPR for users in the European Union.
  • Performance: Consider scenarios that test how the registration process behaves under high load, though this might be more relevant for Load Testing rather than functional acceptance testing.

This ATP framework is designed to cover basic functionalities and common error handling in the user registration process, providing a solid foundation for ensuring a smooth user experience.