Test the pencil

(Not to be mistaken for the pencil test)
 If the requirement for a pencil was to write 10 pages, and during testing the pencil ended up writing 12 pages.
What should the testers do? Pass it or fail?
Should the testers PASS the pencil test because the result was better than expected?
Should the testers FAIL the pencil test because the result was not per spec?
May the testers ask for more specs regarding the weight and thickness of the overall pencil?
May the testers ask for more specs regarding the weight and thickness of the lead core?
Should the testers re-test the darkness of the writing?
Should the testers use other kinds of paper for executing re-testing?
What would you do as a tester?
Why should you do anything else besides testing and giving a pass or fail?



Possible defects – 
  1. Longer pencil than mentioned in spec
  2. Thinner lead core than mentioned in spec;

Possible concerns – 
  1. More money is being spent on the pencil
  2. Less return of investment may be the result.

A few opinions I collected over the years - 
  1. Need more clarification and information
  2. It is a FAIL because the company could be losing its return on investment.
  3. It is a PASS because more the merrier
  4. When the requirement was to test till 10 pages, the tester should have stopped testing at 10 pages. The extra testing is exhaustive testing. We should limit our tests to the resources we are provided only.
What would you suggest and do, if you faced such a situation?

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