Test or testing

[Musicgold]

Hi,

Should I use test or testing at the end of this text? What thumb rule should I use in such situations?

When I hyperlink a phrase, I see an underline distinguishing the phrase from the rest of the text. However, when I click on the link to make sure that it works properly, the underline disappears. After that though the hyperlink is there, the phrase does not stand out from the rest of the text. How can we make sure that the underline stays even after testing/ after the test?

Thanks.

[Dozy]

I question whether either is ideal. It seems to me that you actually want to be sure that the underline remains after the link has been clicked by users. Those users won't be "testing", presumably. The test is to find out what will happen when people do it for real, not an end in itself. Therefore I would be inclined to say "How can we make sure that the underline stays even after the link has been clicked?"

[Musicgold]

Thanks Dozy.

I am calling 'testing' to my step of checking that the link works as I have explained in the text. Given the context what should I use?

[Dozy]

Well, I didn't mean to suggest that "testing" or "test" is the wrong word for what you are doing. What I meant was that you want (I assume) the underline to remain in all cases when the link is clicked (and, most importantly, when it is clicked by the actual users of the website). You do not just want it to remain after you have conducted your test. Therefore, I thought your wording seemed too restrictive. Does that make sense? Is there some reason why "...after the link has been clicked?" does not work for you?

[Musicgold]

Thanks Dozy.

[Dozy]

Oh, sorry...

In this sort of context, "test" refers to a single procedure (either one action or a sequence of related actions), such as, in your case, clicking the link and then checking whether the underline remains.

"testing" refers to the process of carrying out a test or, often, a series of tests conducted over a period of time. As part of your testing, you checked whether the link underlining worked properly.

In your original sentence both would work.

[Musicgold]

Thanks Dozy.