A user-centered approach for testing spreadsheets

Abstract

Spreadsheets are a special form of computer program, which are widely used in areas such as accounting, finance, business management, science and engineering. The wide use of spreadsheets can be attributed to the fact that they appeal to end-user programmers because they are easy to use and require no formal training on designing and programming techniques. However, as the literature indicates, a significant proportion of spreadsheets contain faults. This paper presents an approach for checking spreadsheets on the premises that their developers are not software professionals. It takes inherent characteristics of spreadsheets as well as the conceptual models of spreadsheet programmers into account and incorporates ideas from symbolic testing and interval analysis. To evaluate the methodology proposed, a prototype-tool preserving the look-and-feel spreadsheets developers are accustomed to has been developed.