The present invention provides a system and method for a computer controlled test system in which the computer can change and monitor the compound observable state of an electronic device or telephone during testing procedure. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the compound observable state of the electronic device includes a display bit map file or the status of lights or buttons. The compound observable state can be evaluated by the computer in real-time to alert nearby operators of a failure (i.e. a telephone that needs to be rebooted) or malfunction (not rising to the level of a failure). Also, the data related to the compound observable state can be stored in the computer for later review to assist in debugging the telephone's software.