Test Automation Blog TestSquad

Test Automation Wiki is Moved to Google Knol

2009-10-05T11:17:00.002+03:00

Due to vandalism by unknown users, I moved Test Automation Tools Comparison Wiki To Google Knol, This will help us better control content.

Sorry for inconvenience!

Please continue refining this resource. All you need is just a Google account!

Test Automation Tools Comparison Wiki (Please Participate!)

2009-07-15T11:14:00.007+03:00

I created this simple Wiki that tries to do comparison between various free and propriety automation tools. I added some basic criteria based on my experience.

Everyone is invited to participate in expanding this comparison wiki, Please add whatever you think of. Anybody can edit the document.

Enjoy guys :)

Wiki Link: http://knol.google.com/k/adel-shehadeh/test-automation-tools-comparison-matrix/7xf9qf6a3rej/15?pli=1&safe=on#view

How to connect RFT script to iSeries DB2

2009-07-02T17:09:00.003+03:00

Occasionally, we need to retrieve DB2 data from within our automated script. This is necessary for the parameterization of our automated tests and it will make them data independent. For example, sometimes you need to verify the existence of a created record in the DB and you want to verify that automatically in your scripts. To do that we need a third party to connect RFT to the system DB. This third party is the iSeries ODBC driver. Here are the steps for configuring the iSeries ODBC driver:

1.Install the iSeries Navigator with its DB components. Your Admin can do that.
2.In windows, go to Control Panel->Administrative Tools->Data Source (ODBC)

3.Click Add
4.Select iSeries Access ODBC Driver. Then click Finish.

5.In the General Tab, in Data Source Name field type an arbitrary DB Name of your choice

6.In the Server tab change the SQL Default Library to DB library name

7.In the Packages Tab change the Package Library to DB library name then press ok.

8.Now you’re ready to connect RFT scripts to
9.From within your RFT script, you need to establish a connection between RFT and system DB. The following example code will show you how to do that:

//establish a connection try{ Class.forName("sun.jdbc.odbc.JdbcOdbcDriver");} catch(ClassNotFoundException c){ logError(c.getLocalizedMessage());} //sample query try{ Connection db_connection = DriverManager.getConnection("jdbc:odbc:DB_NAME","username","password"); Statement stm2 = db_connection.createStatement(); stm2.executeQuery("select * from table1");} catch( SQLException x ){ logError(x.getLocalizedMessage().toString());}

10. It’s recommended that you parameterize the database name, username and password by prompting the user in the begging of the script. This will save you the headache of refactoring the script when those credentials change.

11. Sometimes your script needs to do insert statements. You need to make sure that the authenticated user is having the enough privilege. Otherwise your script will crash.

How to configure Terminal Extension with RFT

2009-07-02T16:49:00.002+03:00

To run terminal application automated test scripts under RFT, we need a third party that will help RFT recognize objects of green screen UI. For this purpose we use Terminal Extension component.

Up till now, Terminal Extension works only with RFT 6.1 under windows xp. There is an updated version that works with higher version of RFT and under windows Vista or Windows 7. However, I don’t have them. So I am obliged to use the extension under windows XP and with RFT 6.1.

After your administrator installs the extension, you will see its icon in the Rational Tester Perspective; as the figure shows:

1. Click on the terminal icon as shown in the figure.

2. Fill in the required fields as follows:
Host: Server name, this is the current server name.
Terminal Type: TN5250

3. Save the connection as .conn file for later use.
4. Now click Connect! You’re now connected to the system from within RFT. Now you’re ready to record, edit and playback your automated scripts.

How to connect RFT to the CVS repository

2009-07-02T16:32:00.003+03:00

CVS Repository is a free solution that facilitates scripts editing and sharing within a team. The following are the steps to install and configure CVS with RFT:

1. Ask your system administrator to install CVS server component. This location will be used as your scripts repository.

2. Now open Rational Functional Tester

3. Go to RFT->Window->Open Perspective ->CVS Repository Exploring

4. Click on Add CVS Repository icon

5. The following windows displays

1. Fill in the required fields. Here’s an example:
HOST: server name
Repository Path: /fill in the path
User: domain\username
Password: *********

2. Click finish

3. Now the repository is created

4. Right click on the repository and select: Refresh Branches. This will connect you with the branches you check from the retrieved list.

5. To checkout a project to your workspace, right click on a folder, and then click Check Out. An instance of the project will be checked out to the workspace. Usually the workspace is located in the following path: C:\Documents and Settings\username\IBM

6. To connect to the check out project, change the perspective to Functional Test (Default)

7. Now go to File->Connect to a Functional Test Project

8. Select the checked out folder

9. Click ok

10. Now you’re connected to the project and you can edit it.

11. Once you’re done editing, you need to sync your changes to the repository. Change the perspective to Team Synchronization

12. Right click on the project Folder and click Synchronize

13. Your changes now are saved on the server.

14. If you want to work offline, you can check in a project. Then you need to change the folder name of the project in the workspace. And go to File->Connect to a Functional Test Project. And choose the copied folder, and work offline.

5 Reasons Why Software Certifications Suck

2009-04-17T18:59:00.010+03:00

Software certification is a certificate that you receive as a result of passing an exam which is designed to measure how good you are in a certain programming or software or an IT skill ...etc.
10 years go, certifications maybe had some meaning, but now I truly believe that software certification is becoming a waste of time and effort. And these are my top 5 Reasons:

1.

Anybody Can Pass!

Software certifications are losing their credibility. The web is flooding with sample tests that are almost identical to the exam questions. And the monsters behind those tests (like Microsoft, IBM and Sun ... etc) are not doing their best to update those questions. Of course they have a very good reason for not doing so: the more people passing those exam, the more others would like to take them. So this is more money for them.

2.

Google Does Care Not!

Top companies in silicon valley do not give a damn about what certification you have when they consider you for an interview. I have been interviewed for a vacancy in Microsoft Ireland and what the interviewer cared about is my basic logical thinking and fundamental programming skills and the way i approach fairly complex problems. As for Google, they really really don't care about your certification.

3.

Injustice

Software certifications is a cause of professional injustice.
If you are a real geek and you got shortlisted with another wannabe who has like 10 certifications, he'll be hired!

4.

Software Certification is a Creativity Zapper.

When you fall into the trap of certifications, you will become obsessed in taking more and more certifications, thinking that this would make you a guru in your field. Where in reality, you are just becoming useless rusty piece of junk. And in a while you will be dwarfed by the skill of those who worked on solving the real problems.

5.

The Best are Not Certified.

By a simple look at top programmers and IT pros, the vast majority of them are not certified. They simply have no time for it. I wonder if Steve Gibson or Wozniak were ever certified

You still consider getting a certification?!

Solution for Dynamic Id Generation in GWT Applications

2009-02-14T17:30:00.018+03:00

I have been using Selenium to create automated regression testing and compatibility testing on multiple browsers for a GWT application. In GWT, the object id in the page (the DOM) is dynamically generated each time the page renders. Although Selenium provides a powerful mechanism for testing GWT applications, the painful part is locating the objects in the page.

At first, the workaround for this was to use a locater other than the object id. Other locators include dom, xpath, link, and css.

Although this workaround made testing possible, recording and tweaking the recorded commands in the script became a lengthy process. After recording the script with the dynamic objects , you have to get the name xpath and css and define the object using a different combination of these three locators.

Fortunately , life was made easier when I discovered the following approach that allows you to set a static id for UI elements in the DOM:

DOM.setElementProperty(uiObject.getElement(),"id", "desiredId")

Using this, you do not have to rewrite the recorded code to include the locators. In addition to saving time, this method makes the recorded script both readable and maintainable.

WaitForCondition(string arg0) or Wait() in Selenium?

2009-01-22T11:53:00.002+03:00

What is better to use: WaitForCondition(string arg0) or Wait() in Selenium?

The two methods WaitForCondition(string arg0) and Wait() vary in their efficiency in terms of speed.

I prefer to use WaitForCondition(string arg0) or WaitForPageToLoad(string arg0,string arg1). The reason is that the wait interval of Wait() function is limited by the value specified as an argument. And the wait interval is always fixed. So we’ll not save time if the server response was fast because the method will always wait for a fixed interval.

For example, if we say Wait(3000), it will wait for 3 seconds regardless of the speed of browser rendering. On the other hand, the other two methods check if the condition is met every small fraction of a second. And this way the wait interval is elastic and will accommodate to the speed of browser rendering.

How to Install Watir and Other Related Components.

2009-01-14T11:54:00.006+03:00

The following will guide you on how to install Watir and other related components in a way that will help you achieve fast and data driven development of Watir Scripts. All things written below are already available on the internet. I just consolidated them in one post:

OS:Windows Vista
Browser: IE 7

Install Ruby

Watir is basically a Ruby library. In order for Watir to run, you have to install Ruby first. You can install ruby directly by downloading the binary here:

Install Watir Library

With ruby installed, you can install Watir as follows:

1. Go to the command prompt
2. Type the following command:
gem install Watir

Install a database Driver

You will need a database driver to interface Watir scripts with your desired database. This is necessary to create data pools and to save testing results in a DB repository. There are stable drivers for MS SQL and MySQL databases. Install the MS SQL driver as follows:

1. Go to the command prompt
2. Type the following command:

gem install sequel

3. Follow the instructions.

For MySQL database, you can use the Ruby/MySQL driver which can be installed as follows:

1. Download the latest version of Ruby/MySQL from this page
2. Extract the zipped file ruby-mysql-0.2.6.tar.gz
3. Run the following command from within the extracted folder.:

ruby setup.rb

4. Follow the instructions.

Install WatirRecorder++

WatirRecorder++ is not essential to develop Watir scripts, but it substantially saves the time needed to develop scripts. Watir Ruby scripts can be written manually, which means that the automation developer needs to write user actions one by one. This can be time consuming, so WatirRecorder++ can help. It is also a free windows application, which was developed by Scott Hanselman, an engineer at Microsoft. It listens to user actions in Internet Explorer and converts them into Watir Ruby scripts

You can download WatirRecorder++ here:
Once installed, you can start using it immediately and it’s very easy to use and self explanatory. Just fire the recorder and Internet explorer will start listening to your actions and converting them to a ruby script in real time.

Install IE Developer ToolBar

Internet Explorer Developer Toolbar helps speed developing Watir automated scripts. It helps you identify various properties of html objects in fast visual user friendly fashion. You can identify any html attribute by clicking on it.

You can download IE Toolbar here:

Now you're ready to begin automating your tests with ruby.

Proxy Setting and Selenium RC problem Explained with Solution

2009-01-05T15:25:00.004+03:00

The following is a result of trials and research I conducted to make my selenium RC JAVA scripts run under firefox 3 and IE 7. Here's an explanation of the problem and a proposed solution that worked for me:

By default, whenever we playback a selenium RC script, a proxy profile is automatically created. This profile overwrites the current browser proxy settings to generic values. Which may not necessarily match our browser settings.
A unique proxy profile is automatically generated for each session. You can find the profile saved in a *.pak file under the following directory:
C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Temp\customProfileDir######
where ###### is numeric value and username is your windows user.

A typical proxy *.pak file will look like this with the generic values:
function FindProxyForURL(url, host) {
return 'PROXY localhost:4444; DIRECT';
}
When you run the script and open the browser window, the proxy settings for the browser will be set to null. That’s why the script crashes and the browser is unable to reach any page. So we need to modify the proxy settings before the browser is fired.
To solve this, you can provide additional switches to the “-jar selenium-server.jar” command that will modify the proxy settings of the browser session that is about to fire. The following is an example:
java -Dhttp.proxyHost=isa-mis-02 -Dhttp.proxyPort=8080 -jar selenium-server.jar –avoidProxy

I hope this helps

Issues, Notes and Concerns about Watir

2008-11-19T20:15:00.014+03:00

These are some observations and issues i noticed using Watir. I am automating the test of a dot net application under IE 7.

This post is still being updated ...

Watir is relatively slow if compared to Selenium. Even when you use ie.speed=:zippy, it's not very practical and components like phone numbers fields like the one in the picture below will crash. Because what ie.speed=:zippy does is actually using the method value= instead of set() and i had some fields crashed because of that. So i didn't useie.speed=:zippy and instead i used ie.speed=:fast and value= only with text_field. This improved the speed. But still the playback is slow relatively. Personally i think the reason why Watir is slow because ruby is a fancy programming language!
Watir speed varied a lot according to various network topologies. The speed is changed by a factor of 10 slower or faster. So you have to be careful and make sure that Watir server and the web application under test are neighboring. You can arrange that with your network admin. Of course this is the rule for all automation tools.
I managed to connect my watir script to a datapool. I used ruby/mySQL driver to pull the data from a localhost database, but again the problem is the slow speed when fetching data from the pool. I am not sure if i can consider this a problem in Watir, since it's the case in almost any automation tool i have used. I also managed to pull the datapool from MS Sql Server using Sequel
When accessing dynamic menus, i had to use some workarounds. For example the following code is used to click a dynamic menu element. The menu is basically a table that pops when the mouse hovers on its title:

ie.image(:src, 'path_to_the_menu_tile_image/loanapp_mnu.gif').fire_event("onmouseover")
tempTable1 = ie.table(:id, 'Table_ID')
(tempTable1[8][1]).click()

This code simulates the user action of hovering on the menu title and clicking on the specified menu element.

I am not sure if this is the best way to do this. Any ideas?
Watir has no reporting facilities as far as i know. So we pumped our testing results dynamically to MS SQL database while the script is running. And eventually, a nice grid will display the results in a user friendly way.

Please share your ideas if you have any solution for the above issues

QA and Test Automation Contributors Wanted

2008-10-17T14:05:00.004+03:00

Are you:

Enthusiastic about software testing, QA, and test automation?
You think you have what it takes to write useful content about QA or test automation for the community?
You like to spread the knowledge of testing and QA?
You like to share your stories with the community about testing and QA?
You have proper and good writing style?

If you meet the above qualities, then we think we badly need you and you can become a contributor to testsquad.org. :)

There are no obligation or commitment. It's all voluntary work and for the well being of QA and software testing community :)

Drop us and email at info.testsquad@gmail.com

The testsquad team

Results of Watir Test Automation for a .Net Project

2008-08-05T15:09:00.004+03:00

This is part of a white paper i presented to my employer:

Advantages of Watir

By using Watir, the following has been achieved: -

Out of 14 smoke test cases, 10 have been automated.
Accuracy has been optimized since the human error is significantly reduced for multiple releases. With Watir, it's guaranteed that the exact same test case will be run on subsequent releases. This is a common benefit of test automation.
The time for running smoke test cases is reduced by approximately 70%. A transaction that would take 4 minutes manually took 1 minute using Watir.
Table 1 shows the time measurements for smoke test cases taken for manual run and automated run:

Test Case #	Automatable (Y/N)	Average Manual Run Time(Seconds)	Average Automation Time (Seconds)
1	Y	59	16
2	Y	130	30
3	Y	140	36
4	N	250	-
5	N	230	-
6	Y	370	92
7	Y	240	34
8	N	255	-
9	N	245	-
10	Y	190	40
11	Y	205	60
12	Y	208	55
13	Y	190	45
14	Y	210	48

Table 1 Time Measurements for Manual vs. Automated Run

To avoid data dependency, test cases were made more interactive; by providing user input and database access blocks where necessary.
Cost of automation has been cut. An alternative to a proprietary automation tool has been found.
Disadvantages of Watir
Some cons may hinde
Watir adoption: Watir requires knowledge in Ruby programming language.
WatirRecorder++ does not support some html elements like iframe.
Watir reporting capabilities are limited
Watir is still in the development phase to support other browsers like Mozilla Firefox.
Conclusion:
- We prototyped an automation test model for a .NET project. And the results were satisfying. Human errors are eliminated and testing time is significantly optimized.
- Watir makes a convenient free alternative for test automation of .NET web applications. It has most of the features and capabilities available in other proprietary automation suites.
- Using Watir, the time required for smoke and regression tests can be significantly reduced. This is very useful in agile projects where recurrent smoke tests are required for small builds.
- Watir's scripting language is Ruby. A powerful programming language. This gives Watir scripts virtually unlimited capabilities.
- Watir has some limitations when it comes to reporting and recognition of some html element.
- Using open source/free alternatives in your organization can be of a great business value through time and cost reduction.

Watir Recorder 2

2008-05-29T18:56:00.006+03:00

This is how watir recorder performed for the following elements. The result is not very satisfying, but i still prefer to use the tool. It saves a lot of your time. At least it can recognize the most essential html elements.

HTML Field	Recognized?	Comment
text input	Yes
button	Yes
links	Yes
checkbox	Yes
dropdown list	Yes
radio button	Yes
frame	No	Unable to recognize objects inside
iframe	No	Unable to recognize opjects inside
optgroup	No
option	No
textarea	No

Watir Recorder

2008-05-12T18:36:00.004+03:00

I am required to automate a portion of a .NET application to cut down the time spent in smoke testing. I have used Selenium RC successfully on other projects that run on both Internet Explorer and Firefox. I used Selenium IDE for firefox to record user actions and Selenium RC under eclipse to tune my script and add logic, switching and DB Access blocks. And JUnit of course to create test cases.

There's a little problem: the application is a .Net back office application that is always run on Internet Explorer by internal clients. Because of that, the developer haven't ever paid attention to browser compatibility. And as a result, the application runs terribly on Firefox. And it's not possible to use Selenium IDE to record actions and then run the scripts on IE.

Theoritically, it's possible to code all your scripts by hands using Selenium and run them on IE with Selenium RC, but who has time to do that?

I've heard about Watir before, but never used it. Now i am experimenting with it and i like what i see. Watir Recorder will seamlessly save your time in recording user actions. Here's how a recorded ruby script will look like using Watir Recorder (click to enlarge):

Or you may prefer the text version:

require 'watir'
include Watir
require 'test/unit'
class TC_recorded < Test::Unit::TestCase
def test_recorded
ie = IE.new
ie.goto('http://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8')
ie.link(:url, 'http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en').click
ie.text_field(:name, 'as_q').set('testsquad test automation blog')
ie.select_list(:name, 'num').select_value('10')
ie.select_list(:name, 'num').select_value('20')
ie.select_list(:name, 'lr').select_value('lang_en')
ie.button(:value, 'Advanced Search').click
end
end

Up from this point you can copy your base script to a ruby (*.rb) file and add whatever logic, switching and DB access blocks to extend and parametrize your test. Today, Watir Recorder has been able to recognize text boxes, buttons, links and combo boxes for non .Net applications. As i said, i am still experimenting and i will post more results in the coming days.

Please share your experience! :)

GTAC 2008 Is Coming

2008-04-22T17:30:00.002+03:00

Updates: Google Test Automation Conference is coming. Check the details on Google Testing Blog

Like Concern Suggest Six Sigma Tool

2008-04-19T23:30:00.001+03:00

From now on, i will be frequently discussing some of the cool Six Sigma tools that i have learned back in 2004 in an amazing 2-day extensive Six Sigma course . Today's tool is called Like-Concern-Suggest or LCS Tool for short. It's very simple and this is how it works:

You morning started your day with an early meeting with your boss or co-worker to discuss a certain technicality in a project. Your boss throws an idea that you think will have some limitations when applied into the ground. You boss maybe unaware of it. There are tow drastically different approaches to present your point of view:

You interrupt your boss and say "I have to disagree with you because this will not work since our platform is based on bla bla bla". This is such a negative way of presenting your idea. And it will leave a bad impact on the listener. He/she will forget all of what you have just said and start thinking about how awful you have been.

You try to find the bright side of your boss's idea. Try to see where it's applicable and mentally emphasize on that. Then try to see where it fails and scrutinize it. This is all done mentally and in a blink of an eye. Finally, formulate your sentence using the magical LCS Tool as follows:

I like the idea since it collates with our business need ... etc, My concern is that when we implement it ..., it will fail because of ... etc. I suggest we use the X method since it's more applicable on .... etc.

I have been trying this method for some time and it proved to work very well. Even with the most stubborn people. This could apply to all aspect of life. And you are not bound to use only like, concern and suggest trio. Utter the sentence the way you want but to keep this structure intact. And yes it will take you sometime to master it and do it in a spontaneous way.

These kind of tools may seem straightforward, but sometimes you need someone to tell you about them. :)

You can download the six sigma training kit here.

Why does Agile Software Development pay

2008-04-15T22:45:00.003+03:00

I really like it when concepts are proved mathematically:

benefits of agile

Developers Compliance to Test Automation

2008-04-11T20:22:00.005+03:00

A TestSquad reader sent me an email asking:

Is there a verification process to help validate that application developers comply to test automation requirements during their application development?
Usually we just give the requirements and expect application developers to comply but when you are doing the automation scripts already, some things are still skipped. I am looking for a process that will help them comply.
e.g. automation requirement: name tables as xxxx

I have to admit that answering such a question is not easy. How can you guarantee that development activity is compliant with a subsequent test automation? How does the developer's code affect the success of your test automation?

1 month ago, i was considering Selenium RC to automate a Java web application. Unfortunately and for a reason, automation was not introduced till a late stage in the project. So as soon as we started recording scripts, a problem emerged: the development team did not give an "id" attribute to the numerous html elements. And this forced us to use some workaround; unnecessary if if the QA automation effort was introduced from day one. This is relatively a simple scenario that could be solved using workaround, but i am sure the impact can much more severe for complex projects.

So a corollary answer for the original question is "continuous collaboration between developers and testers from day one in the SDLC" and that naturally leads us to Agility.

I like to use LinkedIn for tough questions. Here's the best answer i got from Greg Akins

I don't think there is an easy answer to this. One issue is
that there is a responsibility for the developer to not only create
features which are requested by the customer/business, but also to
ensure that the features are are created in a way that supports the
test process. It's my experience that the incentive to do the latter
is somewhat limited.

However, having spent time writing and designing Selenium and FIT
tests on smallish team, there was a long learning period associated
with getting the team to understand how the application needed to be
designed to support testing. I'd definitely suggest working side by
side with your developers, and iterating frequently while you're still
expecting frequent "failures" in the dev/test process

I would love to her your personal experience :)

Is Selenium a Performance Test Tool ?

2008-04-09T22:47:00.007+03:00

Some people may get confused when first introduced to Selenium RC or Selenium Grid. The best answer to this is what i read on Selenium users group by Haw-Bin:

It's possible, but it's not a great usage of Selenium. One reason is that actually starting that many browsers will create a lot of overhead on the machines they are running on. You'll end up wasting a lot more computing power than you have to.

Independent Thoughts:

According to pay day loan reviews, a lot of people go for personal loans to start work on these tests. Some use their home equity loans too, but usually it is the loans. This is the reason why it does not take much time in becoming a bad credit loan.

IBM Rational Robot vs. HP (Mercury) QuickTest Professional

2008-04-08T12:25:00.008+03:00

IBM Rational Robot

Smart object recognition
Stable recording and playback. Robot solves the problem of custom objects encountered in AppWorks by the ability to add those object to a class map.
IBM Rational TestManager is necessary to view detailed tests logs.
Datapools supported
Support distributed testing and sharing test scripts.
Very simplified scripting using SQABasic; a simplified scripting language. Other scripting languages are possible (C++ and Java) with an aid from TestManager
IBM Rational Robot Authorized User License + SW Subscription & Support 12 Months (D53NDLL) $ 4,676.00
IBM Rational Robot Floating User License + SW Subscription & Support 12 Months (D52ZFLL) $ 9,009.00

HP (Mercury) QuickTest Professional

Smart object recognition.
Stable recording and playback
Detailed reporting
VB scripting
Scripts can be shared, but HP (Mercury) Quality Center is necessary.
Datapools supported\HP (Mercury) Quality Center is necessary to share scripts.
Pricing: Information Not available. I will update it soon!

.Net 2008 Web Test Review Take 2

2008-03-12T12:09:00.001+03:00

Pros:

1. The tool could be used to verify the core functionality (Not the UI) of the Web application.. This tool is convenient for detecting crashes.

2. Script recording and playback is easy and stable.

3. Works under multiple browsers.

4. Supports browser version updates.

5. Supports Scripting in C# and VB.

6. Affordable system requirements. Same as TFS.

7. Lists detailed result for each passed or failed step.

Cons:

1. The tool has a limitation when the page has JavaScript actions. In order to simulate those actions, the tester has to integrate code to simulate those actions. Which could be cumbersome depending on the application under test.

2. Test reports cannot be exported or printed.

3. Does not support pop-up recording. This is a known issue. See MSDN forums for details.

Quick Notes About RFT (Rational Functional Tester)

2008-03-01T14:13:00.003+03:00

Good Things about RFT:

Flexibility in terms of full access to object properties, controlling those properties in a very meticulous way which gives the ability to override unwanted recognition errors and increase application's immunity to changes in your AUT that should not be considered as fails. RFT is doing great here
Since it works under eclipse, you have virtually unlimited ability to integrate useful java classes that recording and playback cannot do. Such as database accessibility, necessary looping and switching and even adding a nice sleeky UI.

Concerns about RFT:

Unexpected crashes of the framework. This happened three times in less than 8 months. It happens in response to an eclipse update.
Eclipse version effect on new scripts: New Scripts may not run until eclipse is update.
Competition with other products such as QTP and open source tools such as Selenium and Selenium grid, which i am starting to like more and more.
Flash and Flex plug-ins. Flash and flex support is available only in version 7 and above. My version is 6.1. Why isn't there a plug-in to support this?!

Enhance IBM Rational Functional Tester (RFT) with U.I Java Classes

2008-02-23T14:27:00.011+03:00

Disclaimer: This post is related to IBM Rational Functional Tester With Java. It needs some slight modifications to work with other tools.

Sometimes, your automated test script needs to do some strange stuff. Like accessing the database, extracting some value and using this value in subsequent U.I steps in your script.

Suppose that you have hundreds of scripts that needs the following block to access the DB and read a certain value:

try{
Connection db_connection = DriverManager.getConnection("jdbc:odbc:DBNAME",
"username","password");

Statement stm2 = db_connection.createStatement();
stm2.executeQuery("select * from TableName");

}
catch( SQLException x ){

JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(null,
x.getLocalizedMessage().toString(),"Error",
JOptionPane.ERROR_MESSAGE);

}

What if the username and password is changed after a period of time for a certain reason. This means that you need to modify all your scripts and change the credentials. And this could be a pain and very time consuming.

A good practice is creating a class that will prompt the user to enter the credentials and validates them before running the script. This will save time and headache in subsequent releases.

The following is the code for the class with the proprietary information removed:

import javax.swing.JOptionPane;
import resources.SendValidUNandPWHelper;

import com.rational.test.ft.*;
import com.rational.test.ft.object.interfaces.*;
import com.rational.test.ft.object.interfaces.siebel.*;
import com.rational.test.ft.script.*;
import com.rational.test.ft.value.*;
import com.rational.test.ft.vp.*;
import java.sql.Connection;
import java.sql.DriverManager;
import java.sql.SQLException;
import java.sql.Statement;

/**
* Description : Functional Test Script
* @author Ashehadeh
*/
class SendValidUNandPW extends SendValidUNandPWHelper
{
/**
* Script Name : CheckDBDialog
* Generated : Feb 19, 2008 8:31:06 AM
* Description : Functional Test Script
* Original Host : WinNT Version 5.1 Build 2600 (S)
*
* @since 2008/02/19
* @author Ashehadeh
*/
/**
* @param args
*/

public String[] sendValidCredentials(){

String[] result=null;
String[] k =validateInput();

while (k==null){
k= validateInput();
}

return k;

}

//check if the provided credential can access the DB
public static String[] validateInput(){

String[] result=null;
String[] k =isDBonline();

if (k==null){
result =null;
System.exit(0);

}

else {

try{
Connection db_connection = DriverManager.getConnection("jdbc:odbc:DBNAME",k[0],k[1]);

Statement stm2 = db_connection.createStatement();
stm2.executeQuery("select * from TABLEName");
result =k;

}
catch( SQLException x ){

JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(null,
"Please Enter correct Uasername/Password!","Error",
JOptionPane.ERROR_MESSAGE);
/* JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(null,
x.getLocalizedMessage().toString(),"Error",
JOptionPane.ERROR_MESSAGE);*/

result=null;

}

}
return result;
}

//check if the db is online from the first place

public static String[] isDBonline(){

String[] result=null;
String[] k =isOneEmpty();

if (k==null){
result =null;
System.exit(0);

}

//now check for DB connectivity
else {

try{

Class.forName("sun.jdbc.odbc.JdbcOdbcDriver");

result =k;

}

catch(ClassNotFoundException c){
JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(null,
"DB Unavailable!","Error",
JOptionPane.ERROR_MESSAGE);
result=null;
System.exit(0);

}

}
return result;
}

//is one of the fields empty? if so, exit
public static String[] isOneEmpty(){

String[] k=showDialog();
String[] result;

// if one of the username or passwords are empty, exit.
if (k[0]==null || k[1].equals("") ||
k[1].equals("") || k[1]==null){

JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(null,
"Error. Fill the two fields. Click ok to exit!","Error",
JOptionPane.ERROR_MESSAGE);

result=null;
System.exit(0);

}

//if both of them are not empty continue
else{
result=k;

}

return result;

}

//prompt the user for username and password
public static String[] showDialog() {

String DBUsername=JOptionPane.showInputDialog(null,
"Enter DB username:", "Input", JOptionPane.QUESTION_MESSAGE);
String DBpassword=JOptionPane.showInputDialog(null,
"Enter DB password:", "Input", JOptionPane.QUESTION_MESSAGE);
String[] UPArray={DBUsername,DBpassword};
return UPArray;

}

}

.Net 2008 Web Test Review

2008-02-09T17:15:00.005+03:00

I had some time lately to get my hands dirty with .Net 2008 . The tool as described works under the http layer. So it’s designed to test hard core web functionalities. The tool is not a good choice when it comes to creating verification points and verification of JavaScript client side actions details.

The tool could be used to verify the core functionality (Not the UI) of the Web application. For example if you have a web application which is notorious for crashes. This tool is so perfect for detecting this whenever a new release is out.

Recording and playback is so easy and stable.

System requirements are relatively acceptable if compared with other tools. My machine is 2GB in memory. The tool is running smoothly on it.

Playback only displays actions that are associated with Http requests. It will not display javascript user actions. However those actions can be simulated using coding. Click Microsoft Web Test Authoring and Debugging Techniques article for details.

Only VB and C# coding are supported.

This tool may not give you all what we need, but it has some great features for web application functional testing.

The following article is a great resource:

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms364082(VS.80).aspx