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Foundations · 13 lessons

Software Development & the SDLC

Start here. Understand how software is actually built, who builds it, and where testing fits — no experience needed.

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Lesson 1 of 13Beginner

What is Software & How It's Built

Software is just instructions

Software is a set of instructions that tells a computer what to do. A website, a mobile app, an ATM screen — all software. People called developers (or programmers) write these instructions in a programming language (like Java, Python or JavaScript), which is then turned into something the computer can run.

From idea to working app — the short version

  1. Someone has a need ("customers want to book appointments online").
  2. The team agrees on what to build (the requirements).
  3. Developers write the code.
  4. Testers check it works and is safe to release.
  5. The software is released to real users.
  6. It's maintained — bugs fixed, features added.

Why this matters to a tester

You can't test something well if you don't understand how it's made. Knowing the journey from idea to release helps you spot where things go wrong and when to get involved (hint: as early as possible).

Key takeaways

  • Software = instructions written by developers in a programming language.
  • Every product follows a path: need → requirements → code → test → release → maintain.
  • Understanding that path is the foundation of everything else in QA.