In a nutshell
Experimental testing can be viewed as a tester (or a group of testers) that works with the available functionality of the software under test in an unencrypted, unmanaged manner (that is, without test cases), using its own experience and intuition, what to test and how to test .
Usage example
A common cause of intelligence testing is the lack of test cases (or very few) for the software under test. Here Exploratory Testing can be used with great effect.
The tester (or testers) will literally “explore” the software and record any defects found as they progress. Their general knowledge and testing skills come into play here, as they will know from previous experience how to test certain functions and functionality when they encounter them, for example; form fields, navigation, layout, etc. They can also select the document they are testing, although this is considered optional. When several testers test the same software, they usually separate the areas of the software being tested to prevent duplication of effort. Depending on the time scales, testing may be limited in time as a whole or even in certain areas of functionality.
Another example is that the fix was applied to the software due to a critical error, and before publishing a new build, the development team must be sure that the fix was done correctly and does not adversely affect the software. In this case, the tester can first check the error, followed by Exploratory Testing, not only the area affected by the error, but also the surrounding (related) area of the error. This would provide additional confidence in the software as a whole, rather than simply relying on the fact that the correction of the error was verified.
Benefits
One of the advantages of Exploratory Testing is that it can be used at almost any point in the development process, as long as the software has some verifiable features at this point. When an experienced QA professional is in hand, this type of testing can be started immediately without any laborious planning. This can quickly help identify high quality software and provide valuable feedback to the development team. Experimental testing can be very effective when used correctly. In many software developments, this type of testing will be conducted along with other testing methods, rather than being used alone for additional confidence.
disadvantages
To be the most effective, testers with good QA quality are required. This is primarily due to the fact that a key part of Exploratory Testing relies on previous experience in testing similar types of software. As a rule, exploratory testing is not documented, so it can be difficult to find out exactly what was tested during a search testing session. To avoid this, some testers will select a document (at a high level) that they have tested.
