Rojas, J.M. and Fraser, G. (2016) CODE DEFENDERS: A Mutation Testing Game. In: 2016 IEEE Ninth International Conference on Software Testing, Verification and Validation (ICSTW). ICST 2016 : IEEE International Conference on Software Testing, Verification and Validation (ICST) 2016, 10/04/2016-15/04/2016, Chicago, Illinois. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers , pp. 162-167. ISBN 978-1-5090-1826-0
Abstract
Mutation testing is endorsed by software testing researchers for its unique capability of providing pragmatic estimates of a test suite's fault detection capability, and for guiding testers in improving their test suites. In practice, however, wide-spread adoption of mutation testing is hampered because any non-trivial program results in huge numbers of mutants, many of which are either trivial or equivalent, and thus useless. Trivial mutants reduce the motivation of developers in trusting and using the technique, while equivalent mutants are frustratingly difficult to handle. These problems are exacerbated by insufficient education on testing, which often means that mutation testing is not well understood in practice. These are examples of the types of problems that gamification aims to overcome by making such tedious activities competitive and entertaining. In this paper, we introduce the first steps towards building Code Defenders, a mutation testing game where players take the role of an attacker, who aims to create the most subtle non-equivalent mutants, or a defender, who aims to create strong tests to kill these mutants. The benefits of such an approach are manifold: The game can serve an educational role by engaging learners in mutation testing activities in a fun way. Experienced players will produce strong test suites, capable of detecting even the most subtle bugs that other players can conceive. Equivalent mutants are handled by making them a special part of the gameplay, where points are at stake in duels between attackers and defenders.
Metadata
Item Type: | Proceedings Paper |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2016 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other users, including reprinting/ republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted components of this work in other works. Reproduced in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Games; Software; Conferences; Software testing; Education; Context |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Engineering (Sheffield) > Department of Computer Science (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 19 May 2017 13:38 |
Last Modified: | 23 Mar 2018 22:10 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1109/ICSTW.2016.43 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1109/ICSTW.2016.43 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:116454 |