An agile software process should be capable of producing effective code and new code after each iteration in no time. Agile can put coverage pressures and time on different testing approach. In addition to this, it also exhibits additional pressures on automated testing, primarily if the team members fail to understand the limitations and nature of automated testing. It is possible to bring an improvement in the automated testing process by making the team educated about different automated testing processes. The team, involved in software testing services should also be taught about how to write the automated test code and to update it easily over the due course of time. You will be able to learn both as you go through the below mentioned write-up:
Educating the stakeholders on the strengths and limitations of automated testing
Unseasoned developers and product managers might have the wrong notion that automated testing is the best way to producing a quality software. They think that automated testers are capable of writing the test in a similar manner, the developers have the ability to write the tests in the same time, the developers will be writing the code and the automated tests can find the flaws in the latest functionality on the very first time, the tests run. For ensuring a successful automated effort, you should ensure that the other members of your team understand that automated tests are verifying existing functionality and are not detecting any flaws or errors in the new functionality.
In addition to this, they also need to understand that automated tests come with a maintenance cost. It is essential to change the existing test code for reflecting certain changes to the application code. Besides this, QA professionals who write these tests are not testing any new functionality. Such type of education are capable of clearing up the facility expectations and ensuring that the automated testing process is working for achieving the strengths of automated testing.
Using the right tools for testing
For few people automated testing is only automated user interface testing like use of Selenium Webdriver for testing the web pages., However, in case your website is acting via API or Application Program Interface, you might also consider using different automated test tools for submission of API requests as well as verification of data. As the Application Program Interface becomes mature, changing the Web designs might be slow. In addition to this, it might verify that the functionality of the data processing is closer to the code, in comparison to that via the interface.
Motivates the developers to come up with unique identifiable elements
As the developers develop interface, they might provide the controls and elements default names, in place of mentioning unique IDs for every one of them. The test code might have to depend on fragile tricks for the identification of elements like looking for the Required Dev's Group, Register form. If a comprehensive and unique name is given to the edit box by the developers, like FirstName, the code should be capable of finding it, regardless of how the designer is shuffling the controls on the page.
Writing automated tests for the mature code
In case you begin to write the automated tests at a very early stage, you will find that you have to change the test codes constantly for matching different changes in the code of the app. This is because the nature of the agile development procedure invites inputs as well as changes the requests early. At times, during the development of a feature, the workflow and the interface of a feature will be changing, when it is under an active development.
If you are capable of writing automated test code after the maturity and stabilization of a feature, you are going to spend much less time in rewriting the test code. Thus, you will be scheduling the development at the initial phase of the iteration once the feature has been stable and the time is used before the new code, present in the iteration is ready to test.
Provide modularity to the code
At the time of developing the test code, it is essential to give a consideration to the different discrete operations of your tests, and write the methods and functions for the encapsulation of these actions. For instance, as you are interacting with the Add User form, you require pressing on Submit and wait for the success page. Instead of it, you can create unique functions for pressing on the button for displaying the form, for clicking on Submit, for entering the data, and waiting for the success of the page or message. In this way, as the Edit User feature is available, it is possible to reuse the functions which enter the data as well as write new functions for the Click Edit User.
Modular code plays a vital role in reducing the effect of changes in the default workflow as the right use of unique identifiers can prevent you to reorganize the page.
Separating long writing and data handling from the interface interaction
As you work to make the code modular, you should ensure to separate the code which manipulate or read the test data, code which writes to long files, as well as other non-interface specific logic into the functions, which can be used by the code, irrespective of what the operation or page, it tests. This makes the actual interface code much easier to read, when it is time to update the interface automation. In addition to this, updating the test code is really easy when you need to introduce changes in the data application.
An agile process should be capable of producing software which is known to evolve and accomplish the stakeholder requirements while perceiving them. This can result in stress for the testers, specifically the automated testers. You can help them to overcome it by educating them about it. It requires a smart test code design and a bit of planning for bringing an improvement in the agile automated testing process.