Special Issue in Specification Based Testing

Special Issue of the Journal of Software Testing Verification and Reliability (STVR) on:
Specification-based Testing

Guest Editors

Rob Hierons, University of London, UK
John Derrick, University of Kent, UK

Aims & Scope

This STVR special issue will address the relationship between specifications and testing. The relationship between specifications and testing includes ways in which information derived from a formal or informal specification can be used to assist testing but also other issues such as testability. Testing in this context includes any process that is capable of detecting faults in an implementation. This includes both dynamic testing, in which we execute the implementation under test (IUT) and compare the output with that expected; static testing in which we compare the specification and the code without actually executing the IUT, and any further process which builds confidence in the final product. Topics covered by the special issue include but are not limited to:

Test automation using information derived from a specification.
Test case generation from (formal or informal) specifications.
Tests that are likely to detect faults in a system that has been derived from a formal specification.
Testability: producing a specification that makes testing simpler or more powerful.
Tool support.
Case studies.

It is envisaged that the special issue will include papers of differing scope. These might include survey papers, technical papers that make a new and substantial contribution and industrial usage papers that describe the results of applications of these techniques.

Submissions

Papers are solicited that describe basic or applied research on any of the above topics. To discuss potential submissions please contact either of the two Guest Editors. Submitted papers must not have been published previously or be concurrently under consideration for publication in any other journals or conferences. Papers should be typed in 12-point, using double-line spacing, and should normally be no more than 20 pages long. Authors should submit four paper copies to Rob Hierons at the address given below. Authors should also supply a full postal address and telephone number and, where possible, a fax number and electronic mail address.

Important Dates

31st March 2000 - Deadline for submissions
28th July 2000 - Notification of acceptance/revision
15th September 2000 - Deadline for final versions
December 2000 - Expected publication date

Contact Details of Guest Editors

Dr Rob Hierons
The Department of Mathematical and Computing Sciences,
Goldsmiths' College, University of London,
New Cross, London, SE14 6NW, United Kingdom
r.hierons@gold.ac.uk
Telephone: +44 (0) 207 919 7854
Facsimile: +44 (0) 207 919 7853