Why is Selenium a Good Weapon to Have in Your Arsenal?

When it comes to software testing, every testing organization seeks the help of automated testing tools as it helps in saving both time and money. Software testing is an important part of the whole software development procedure and the cost of the process affects the whole cost of the project. This is why more and more organizations are opting for open source tools rather than investing in commercial tools which cost a lot of money, ultimately increasing the cost of the whole project.

There are a huge number of automated testing tools available for the purpose of testing the various aspects of the software; however, Selenium tops the list. Selenium is becoming more and more popular each day with the testers and the organizations who specialize in testing both functionality and GUI of the web based applications. It is also effective as far as unit testing is concerned in case of JavaScript. Another important fact behind the popularity of the selenium software is the fact that it is supported by immense number of open source developers who are regularly working on the further development of the tool on a regular basis.

So why is selenium a good weapon to have in your arsenal? Here are some reasons to satiate your query.

1.      Selenium is capable of working on almost all the available operating systems which makes it far more popular than the other available automated testing tools out there.
2.      Being an open source automated testing tool, selenium s far more cost effective that the commercial counterparts which are available in the market.
3.      Selenium supports various languages like such as Python, Pearl, and Ruby, PHP, .NET (C #) and Java pretty well. However, in order to perform your task with the selenium tool, knowing just one of the many languages is more than enough.
4.      Selenium is built in a way where it doesn’t depend on any particular scripting language for its workability which is a huge advantage when it comes to software testing. This provides you with the liberty of writing the automated testing script in any language you wish to or prefer. 
5.      Selenium is easy to work with as it functions with equal ease on all the leading and popular browsers like Opera, Safari, Chrome, IE 6, 7, 8 or Mozilla Firefox.
6.      Supported by Google, Selenium is regularly developed by a team of professional and dedicated developers who are trying to make it better every day.
7.      When you use selenium for automated software testing and detecting various elements on your web based software, it uses robust processes like CSS, Xpath, DOM and so on.
8.      When it comes to exerting of frameworks that revolve around Object oriented programming such as Keyword Driven, Data driven and Hybrid, there are no automated tools which can match up to selenium.
9.      Selenium is very well integrated with various open source frameworks like TestNG, JUnit, NUnit and so on which are popular in the software industry.
10.        Selenium proves to be a huge help when it comes to testing software which involves multiple machines or multiple browsers in different machines at the same time. Selenium helps in saving both time and money as it allows easy workability on various different machines at the same time thus allows you to complete large projects which have a limited period of time for completion.

What are you still waiting for? Get selenium in your arsenal and get all the advantages of this awesome tool to test your web based applications now!

Few Ways to Test Mobile Apps under Real User Conditions

To make a mobile app popular and profitable in the longer run, businesses must get its user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) tested thoroughly. The businesses further need to test the app using real devices and under real user conditions. Most businesses use emulators and simulators to assess the application’s functionality and performance across a variety of devices without investing in real devices. But the emulators often fail to provide detailed information about the application’s performance on a specific device or in a particular user environment. That is why; it has become essential for enterprises to explore ways to test the mobile app under real world conditions using various devices, platforms, users, networks and test configurations.

Exploring Options to Test Your Mobile App under Real User Conditions

Field Testing

The field testing model requires businesses to deploy testers in field. The deployment will enable the testers to assess the mobile app across a wide range of networks and service providers. For instance, the testers can assess the application’s functionality and performance under a number of network connections including 2G, 3G, 4G, Wi-Fi and cellular. Likewise, they can test the application with no or poor network connectivity, switch from one network to another, and identify the hot spots and dead spots.

However, the testers have to use user scenarios and mobile persona additionally to effectuate field testing. These two techniques will help testers to make the tests more realistic and obtain more reliable test results. As a fictitious identity, mobile personal represents a group of users who will use the mobile app. When the testers are familiar with the targeted users of the app, it becomes easier for them to simulate their actions and behaviours realistically. Further, they can create a variety of test ideas by keeping in mind the targeted user group.

On the other hand, user scenario, as a narrative, describes the usage of the mobile app, and how it fits into the lifestyle of users. The testers have to identify scenarios according to individual members of the targeted user group. They can further customize the user scenarios based on mobile persona. On the whole, the testers need to combine mobile persona and user scenarios to understand how different users will use the mobile app, and test the app effectively in various contexts.

User Testing

As its name implies, the real world testing model involves real users in the mobile testing process. A business can release the mobile app to diverse users to get it evaluated on a wider variety of devices, platforms, networks and environments. Further, the feedback and suggestion received from real users will help the enterprise to deliver a high quality mobile application. Each business also has option to choose from a number of user testing methods. Some of these methods involve selected end users, whereas others emphasize on in-depth auditing of the application’s usability and user experience.

A business can always save money by getting the application tested by people selected randomly. The randomly selected users will use the application, and share their views and feedback. Despite being informal, the testing technique helps businesses to get relevant test results. Also, an enterprise has option to share the mobile app with diverse users through an online platform, and get the usability testing performed remotely. It can further pay the tester for the bugs identified by him, or provide a detailed survey questionnaire. The developers can evaluate the feedback and suggestions shared by the remote users, and take the required actions to make the mobile app flawless.

A business also has option to get the mobile app testing by a seasoned user testing professional. The professional will audit the application’s usability and user experience thoroughly, and provide his feedback along with identifying the defects. The enterprise can further deploy different user testing professionals to get the app tested based on diverse thought processes.  Alternatively, the business can also invite end users to visit its in-house usability lab and test the mobile application, while being observed by the user testing professional.

Many enterprises nowadays opt for crowd-sourced testing to identify all flaws in an application, with reduced testing time and cost. But a business has to consider several factors while making the application available to real users for testing. It is always important for the business to pick the right real world testing option, and implement a custom strategy by keeping in mind the pros and cons of the option.