gh-omkamal-pypict-claude-skill/QUICKSTART.md

Quick Start Guide

Get started with PICT Test Designer in 5 minutes!

Installation (Choose One)

Option 1: Personal Installation (All Projects)

# Clone to your personal skills directory
git clone https://github.com/omkamal/pypict-claude-skill.git ~/.claude/skills/pict-test-designer

# Restart Claude Code - the skill is now available in all projects

Option 2: Project-Specific Installation

# From your project directory
git clone https://github.com/omkamal/pypict-claude-skill.git .claude/skills/pict-test-designer

# Restart Claude Code - the skill is available in this project only

Option 3: Manual Download

1. Download ZIP from: https://github.com/omkamal/pypict-claude-skill
2. Extract to ~/.claude/skills/pict-test-designer (personal) or .claude/skills/pict-test-designer (project)
3. Restart Claude Code

Your First Test Plan (3 Steps)

Step 1: Start Claude Code

Open your terminal or Claude Code Desktop

Step 2: Describe Your System

Simply tell Claude what you want to test:

I need to test a login function with these requirements:
- Users can login with email and password
- Support for 2FA (enabled/disabled)
- "Remember me" checkbox option
- Rate limiting after 3 failed attempts

Can you design test cases using the pict-test-designer skill?

Step 3: Get Your Test Cases!

Claude will automatically:

1. ✅ Analyze your requirements
2. ✅ Identify test parameters and values
3. ✅ Generate a PICT model with constraints
4. ✅ Create optimized test cases
5. ✅ Provide expected outputs

Example Output

You'll receive:

1. PICT Model

Email: Valid, Invalid, Empty
Password: Valid, Invalid, Empty
TwoFactorAuth: Enabled, Disabled
RememberMe: Checked, Unchecked
FailedAttempts: 0, 1, 2, 3

IF [FailedAttempts] = "3" THEN [Email] = "Valid";

2. Test Cases Table

Test #	Email	Password	2FA	Remember	Failed	Expected Output
1	Valid	Valid	Enabled	Checked	0	Success: Login with 2FA prompt
2	Valid	Invalid	Disabled	Unchecked	1	Error: Incorrect password (2 attempts left)
...	...	...	...	...	...	...

3. Summary

• Total combinations: 432
• PICT test cases: 15
• Reduction: 96.5%

Real-World Examples

Try the ATM Example

Using the pict-test-designer skill, analyze the ATM specification 
in examples/atm-specification.md and show me the test coverage

This demonstrates a complex system with:

• 8 parameters
• 25,920 possible combinations
• Only 31 test cases needed!

Common Use Cases

Testing a Web Form

Design test cases for a registration form with:
- Name (required, max 50 chars)
- Email (required, must be valid format)
- Phone (optional, 10 digits)
- Country (dropdown with 5 options)
- Terms checkbox (required)

Testing an API Endpoint

I need to test a REST API endpoint that:
- Accepts GET, POST, PUT, DELETE methods
- Requires authentication (valid token, invalid token, missing token)
- Returns JSON, XML, or error
- Has rate limiting

Design test cases.

Testing System Configuration

Test our application deployment with:
- Environment: Dev, Staging, Production
- Database: MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite
- Cache: Enabled/Disabled
- SSL: Enabled/Disabled
- Log Level: Debug, Info, Error

With the constraint: Production must not use SQLite or Debug logging

Tips for Best Results

✅ Do This

• Describe your requirements clearly
• Mention any business rules or constraints
• Specify what different values mean
• Ask for specific output formats if needed

❌ Avoid This

• Too vague: "test my app"
• No context: "make test cases for login"
• Missing constraints: Not mentioning dependencies between parameters

Next Steps

1. Try it with your own system - Start with a simple feature
2. Review the examples - Check out the ATM example
3. Read the full documentation - See SKILL.md
4. Customize for your needs - Adapt parameters and constraints
5. Share your results - Consider contributing examples!

Getting Help

• Questions? Open an issue on GitHub
• Examples? Check the examples directory
• Documentation? Read SKILL.md and README.md

Advanced Usage

Generate More Test Cases

Once you have the PICT model, you can:

1. Use online tools:

   • https://pairwise.yuuniworks.com/
   • https://pairwise.teremokgames.com/

2. Install PICT locally:

   # Windows: Download from GitHub
   # https://github.com/microsoft/pict/releases
   
   # Linux/Mac: Use pypict
   pip install pypict
   

3. Modify the model:

   • Add more parameters
   • Change constraints
   • Adjust values
   • Re-generate test cases

Export to Test Management Tools

The generated test cases can be:

• Copied to Excel/CSV
• Imported to JIRA, TestRail, Azure Test Plans
• Converted to automated test scripts
• Used in documentation

Success Story

"We were testing a configuration-heavy system with hundreds of possible combinations. Using PICT Test Designer, we reduced our test suite from 500+ tests to just 45 tests while maintaining the same coverage. This saved us weeks of testing time!" - QA Team Lead

What's Next?

• Add this skill to your regular testing workflow
• Try it on different types of systems
• Share examples with your team
• Contribute improvements back to the project

Happy Testing! 🚀