Automated Testing Tools - Software Testing: Testing Across the Entire Software Development Life Cycle - page 175

11.9 SUM MARY

Automated testing tools are a collection of software products designed specifi -
cally to assist software testers and software testing managers with different as-
pects of a testing project. The current commercial tool market has over 300 prod-
ucts. Each of these tools offers to assist the tester with one or more of the tester's
activities. So far, no one tool has been proven to offer assistance with all tester
activities.
There are testing situations in which the use of automated testing tools is inap-
propriate, disadvantageous, and expensive. There are also testing situations in which
the use of automated testing tools is appropriate, advantageous, and cost-effective.
Automated test tools that execute the AUT are designed to be used in a unique way.
This unique way is referred to as “record/playback.”
There are only two touchpoint paradigms that underlie the large number of
available test tool products. A test tool touchpoint is the location of a test tool probe,
either hardware or software, of the computer under test in order to measure some
specifi c operational aspect of this test computer.
The fi rst touchpoint paradigm is used by functional testing tools. The goal of
this paradigm is to directly operate a computer as if the end-user was performing
the actions from his or her chair. The second touchpoint paradigm is used by per-
formance testing tools. The goal of this paradigm is to capture the messages and
message timing passed between client computers and server computers that are all
contributors to the AUT. The really good news for testers is that the two touchpoint
paradigms do not confl ict. Both touchpoint paradigms can be invoked by using func-
tional test tools and performance test tools at the same testing time in the same test-
ing environment.
Based on the previous sections in this chapter, you may conclude incorrectly
that it is a good idea for a tester to always use automated testing tools. This would
cause the tester to worry fi rst about which test tool to use. Quite the contrary, one of
the early development lifecycle decisions a test team leader must make is whether
to include automated testing tools in the test environment plans. Only after the ap-
propriateness of test tool usage has been determined does the question of tool choice
arise.

KEY TERMS AND CONCEPTS

Automated testing tool
Eclipse
Hyades
Record/playback
Script file
Test script command
language
Data-driven test execution

Test tool touchpoints
Foreground testing
Background testing
Test to ol ser ver
Test script library
management
Test execution harness
management

Expected values versus
actual values
Pass/fail
Hidden results
Screen object coordinates
versus screen object
properties