Software Testing has a lot of challenges both Manual as well as Automation. Explore the various challenges that testers face in the workplace along with the ways to overcome them:
Generally in the Manual Testing scenario, developers go through the build to the test team assuming that the responsible test team or tester will pick the build and come to enquire what the build is about. This is the case in organizations that are not following so-called ‘Processes’.
Tester is the middleman between developing a team and the customers, handling pressure from both sides. We assume most of our readers are smart enough to handle this pressure. Aren’t you?
Table of Contents:
Manual and Automation Testing Challenges
This is not always the case. Sometimes testers may add complications to a testing process due to their unskilled way of working.
In this post, we have added most of the testing challenges that are created due to testing staff, developing staff, testing processes, and wrong management decisions.
So here we go with the Top Challenges!
#1) Testing the Complete Application
Is that possible? That’s indeed impossible. There are millions of test combinations.
It is not possible to test every combination in both Manual as well as Automation Testing. If you try all these combinations you will never ship the product 🙂
#2) Misunderstanding of Company Processes
Sometimes you just don’t pay proper attention to what the company-defined processes are and for what purposes they are.
There are some myths in testers that they should only go with the company processes even if these processes do not apply to their current testing scenario. This results in incomplete and inappropriate Application Testing.
#3) Relationship with Developers
It’s indeed a big challenge. It requires a very skilled tester to handle this relationship positively and even by completing the work in a tester’s way.
There are simply hundreds of excuses that the developers or testers can make when they do not agree with some points. For this, the tester also requires Good Communication, Troubleshooting, and analyzing skills.
#4) Regression Testing
If a project continues to expand, then regression testing work simply becomes uncontrolled. There will be pressure to handle current functionality changes, previous working functionality checks, and bug tracking.
#5) Lack of Skilled Testers
This could be called a “wrong management decision” while selecting or training testers for their project task in hand.
These unskilled fellows may add more chaos than simplifying the testing work. This results in incomplete, insufficient, and ad-hoc testing throughout the Testing Life Cycle.
#6) Testing Always Under Time Constraint
Hey tester, we want to ship this product by this weekend, are you ready for completion?
When this order is from the boss, the tester simply focuses on task completion and not on the test coverage and quality of work. There is a huge list of tasks that you need to complete within the specified time. This includes writing, executing, automating, and reviewing test cases.
#7) Which Tests to Execute First?
If you are facing the challenge stated in point no 6, then how will you decide which test cases should be executed and with what priority? Which tests are more important than others? This requires a good experience to work under pressure.
#8) Understanding the Requirements
Sometimes testers are responsible for communicating with customers to understand the requirements.
What if the tester fails to understand the requirements? Will he be able to test the application properly? Definitely not! Testers require good listening and understanding capabilities.
Many sub-challenges – Should automate the testing work? To what level, should automation be done?
Do you have sufficient and skilled resources for Automation? Is time permissible for automating the test cases? The decision of Automation or Manual Testing will need to address the pros and cons of each process.
#10) Decision to Stop Testing
When to stop testing?
This is a very difficult decision. Requires core judgment of testing processes and the importance of each process. It also requires an “on-the-fly” decision ability.
#11) One Test Team Under Multiple Projects
It is quite challenging to keep track of each task. Communication challenges are also involved. Many times, it fails one or both projects.
#12) Reuse of Test Scripts
Application development methods are changing rapidly, thereby making it difficult to manage the test tools and test scripts. Test script migration or reuse is a very essential but difficult task.
#13) Testers Focusing on Finding Easy Bugs
If the organization is rewarding testers based on the number of bugs (a very bad approach for judging Testers Performance) then some testers only concentrate on finding easy bugs that don’t require deep understanding and testing.
Hard or subtle bugs remain unnoticed in such a testing approach.
#14) To Cope With Attrition
Increasing salaries and other benefits make many employees leave the company at very short career intervals. Management faces hard problems to cope with the attrition rate. Challenges – New testers require project training from the beginning, as complex projects are difficult to understand, thereby leading to delays in shipping dates!
These are some of the top Software Testing challenges that we face daily. Project success or failure depends largely on how you address these basic issues.
For further reference and detailed solutions to these challenges, refer to the book “Surviving the Top Ten Challenges of Software Testing” written by William E. Perry and Randall W. Rice.
Challenges Testers Face in Workplace: Ways to Overcome
So far we explored the Software testing challenges. In this section, we will take a look at the various challenges faced by testers in the workplace along with the ways to overcome them.
Let’s move on!!
General Challenges
#1) Company’s Culture
This is the first challenge on the list because being in the IT services industry had me dealing with multiple clients, teams, locations, and companies. I loved being part of some teams and with others, I wouldn’t want to repeat the experience.
- The team that I worked for started at 6 am. Another one insisted on working until 6 pm.
- One made contractors enter the building through a different door and another that did not even believe in swipe card access.
- One made us leave all mobile devices with memory, Bluetooth, or any other connectivity outside while another company played wonderful music at the workplace all day.
- Some companies follow a strict hierarchy with their CEO’s attaining celebrity status and another that has no cubicles and everyone is equal.
What I realized over time is that there is no one right or wrong way of doing things; it is just their way. Given time, we will always adapt to the circumstances, but if you don’t after giving it a fair chance, then find the exit nearest to you.
#2) Different Time Zones
Have you stayed in the office or at home in front of the laptop till late at night trying to catch up with your teams that are geographically distributed? Does it sound familiar?
There is no antidote to this problem (Maybe, coffee?) Use clocks that show you the exact time at different locations (a world clock on your smartphone works too), perfect communication protocols in a way that there need not be meetings for issues resolved over email, and practice time-zone-conscious scheduling to avoid this problem to a major extent.
Recommended read => Onsite – Offshore Model of Software Testing – Make it work for you
#3) Cross-Cultural Differences
I have worked in both India and the US. Although corporate culture is fairly non-ethnic, where we are from impacts our behavior and understanding.
For example: “Hi, How are you?” is a common greeting in the US. It does not necessarily mean they want to know exactly what you are feeling at the moment. However, when I was new in the US, I used to think, “I was just in a meeting with this person a moment ago. What would change in such a little time?” 🙂 Good for me, I learned fast.
Also, in some cultures, talking less indicates quiet contemplation while in others it simply means, it is boring or you have nothing to say.
When you try to understand these small nuances, you understand people better and can function in a better way.
Specific Challenges in Testing/QA
#4) No Documentation
The classic. Many teams still believe in verbal communication and keep little reference material about how the software became what it is today. Rapid development cycles only made this more intense.
However, this is one of those cases of challenges becoming opportunities.
Engage in conversations with your development, business analysis, or technical teams. Research the application; set up references looking at similar applications and their standards. Understand the end-user perspective. Get adventurous with exploratory testing.
Recommended Reading => How to Test an Application without Requirements?
#5) Unstable Environment
Usually, QA teams suffer from an inferior environment setup and we have to be ready to make the most of what we have.
For example: The server that gets overloaded and needs a restart a few times during testing, the logs that need clearing often to make sure that there isn’t an overflow, etc.
Bring these problems to the forefront and make sure you get environmental support during testing. For commonly happening cases, get access to the servers with the steps to do some simple maintenance, such as restarting, clearing queues, etc.
Recommended read => How to Minimize the Test Environment Defects
#6) Tools Being Force-fed
Sometimes we know that a tool is not fit for the job. We have no choice but to continue using it because the clients/teams already have licenses and would not want to go for a new one until the current license runs out.
I had to test a Mainframes application on HP QTP without the Terminal Emulator add-in. In this case, I have the tool but not the correct configuration. There was little I could do about it, so I had to switch between Normal and low-level recording modes as a workaround.
It’s not fun, but you learn from alternatives. Or at least, you will reach a definite conclusion as to whether the alternatives work or not.
Also read => A to Z guide on selecting an automation tool
#7) Some Applications Just Don’t Cut it
Have you ever tested an application and started to wonder,” How can this even be called software when it’s a bug-producing machine?”
I have had this special privilege where most of my day was all about simply reporting bugs and reporting bugs some more. Some areas of the application get cut off as a result of these bugs. The whole spectrum of severity throws you off your game and it gets overwhelming when you start thinking, “Is there a point to what I’m doing here?”
Over time, I have learned to stay firm on my decision to have the software ready to test and to reject the build. I no longer look for a silver lining when there isn’t one.
Other Challenges
#8) People Quirks
Did you ever have a developer bang the conference room table as soon as you explained a defect? Yes, that happened to me. 🙂 I later came to know that it was his form of expression and not aggravation.
I also had a team member who at first came off as uncooperative and rude but was just shy. This person would hardly say a few words or meet the eye when asked for status updates. I was very close to putting in a negative performance review and escalating had I not realized that the same details could be easily and elaborately received from him through email. It was a one-on-one conversation that he wasn’t comfortable with.
Everyone is different and deserves the benefit of the doubt. Don’t be too quick to judge and respect boundaries.
Also Read => How to Manage Test Teams Effectively
#9) Lack of Feedback Loop
Sometimes you go days on an end working on it and obsessing over a deliverable only to find out that it wasn’t supposed to be this way.
Or you work from a remote location with your team located elsewhere you feel isolated and have no one to bounce your ideas off of.
Or if you receive feedback that is not exactly helpful. Let’s say you created a process document and they said it was good. You don’t see the process document published or put to use and you are left wondering what happened to it. So, the feedback was not good and was almost a non-feedback.
Seek honest feedback and create a community to discuss your ideas. Not often is the easiest thing to do, but without the positive reinforcement that this step provides you are left demotivated.
#10) Preconceived Notions
Well, we know there are many prejudices in the workplace around gender, nationality, etc. I am not going to go into specifics here, but unless we start looking at the world as a global village and everyone as equal, the world, and the workplace both become toxic.
We hope this article would have helped you more in knowing about the various challenges.
Conclusion
Most of them are working on the Manual and/or Automation Testing field. Although we have addressed many of the above challenges in our previous tutorials, we want your views on handling these Software Testing challenges.
Which of the items on the list did you agree with? Was there anything that surprised you? What challenges did you face and how did you overcome them? Please share your thoughts and experiences with us in the comments section below. We would love to hear from you.
Was this helpful?
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hi,
Could any one suggest me which one is best “Manual or Automation”. Currently i am in Manual Testing. Or else i want to switch over to Automation.
Kavitha, there is no doubt, you got to focus on gaining your skills on automation, with time and experience manual testing jobs will be easily done by juniors. Automation skills will definitely help you in the long run.
Hi,I want to know which automation tool is best in software testing (Mercury or rational).And how much time is required to be done it perfectly.
sahil2001@hotmail.com
Hello friends,
I work as a STE in an in-house product of our company and would like introduce testing metrics to measure the quality and other aspects of our product.
I came across somewhere that not all metrics will be useful at the early stages of metrics introduction, and that different metrics can be introduced when the existing ones prove to be worthy / useless for the project, i.e., basically a trial-error method.
I would like to know any site or blog or anywhere, where I can get the list of metrics (with their formula) that are prevailing / commonly used in the industry. I would also like to know how to interpret the result of the metrics.
Thanking you in anticipation.
Take Care..
ShreeG
Any one tell me good Automation tool and low cost
Selenium, it is open source tool which when integrated with TestNG, Appium,RestAssured it would allow you test mobile based and API testing as well.
excellent for study
Really ecellent. Pts 3, 6, 7 & 8 are really g8 Challenges for Tester
Hi ,
Im new to testing can anyone help me by providing me with real time testing problems and the solutions to those problems. Preferred for commercial insurance application ( insurance domain) and mortgages ( banking domain). I would really appreciate if i could get at least 4-5 problems and solutions for each domain. I would really appreciate this help given to me. Thank you
hello every body,
i want help.
as i m thinking to do software testing course,
will anybody guide me
from where to do,
manual or automation.
i hav completed my B-tech. and i m not getting job because i am having less than 60 in 10th 12th, but having 64 % in degree.
is this a right option to do.
gr8 post
Actually what is the use of QTP? i am working as a software tester,i do with mannual testing only,i tried to study QTP,but it seems so useless
The way you explined the points really good. I got some information from your message. Thank you.
Hi,
I like to share some of my personal difficulties here.i have 2.7 years of experience in testing.yesterday i had a interview with the client?what are all the difficulties which you face in testing?
My answer is 1)reopening the defects again
2)Not understand the requirements/brd is missing in our concern
can any one agree what i said???
Hello sir,
iam pavan btech ece 2012 passed out now iam doing a job in small company as a manual tester were iam only one tester in my company doing only the functionality part testing so as a manual tester there will be no growth so now i deceided to move to automation by keeping 2+ fake experience so for that wat should i learn iam a ece student no programming knowledge so please give me suggestion that whether i should continue in this small company or i should go by keeping fake experience to other company because in my company iam only single tester there is no test lead so whether i can gain knowledge by staying in this company by only testing functionality part please tell me iam in full confusion reply to my mail sir
Hi Bro;
As a manual tester there is no growth but some company needs manual tester also .if you are looking for a career opportunity first go thru the automation testing in java/python any institute who provides placement . Then apply for job
Don’t go thru with fake certificate other wise you will be in trouble every company will verify your background if they not catch you after joining they will ask you to write a code script at least you have knowledge on that because 2years of experience is not a less time so think twice before taking any action
hi,vijay
whatever information or details your giving its really added to our knowledge but I am having some queries regrding how to face HR round and technical round so pls
give more details if you have some idea.
Hi,
Is really the results from automation testing is fruitful than Manual Testing.
I feel complete satisfication of testing comes from manual testing. I didnt get in automation.
pls share your views regarding this…
hi,
i am working as cust services executive-using visionplus.now i wish to enter into software testing-visionplus. can anyone help to know details in UAT testing.how to start career in testing.
my email id is shakila.rani78@gmail.com
Thanks rahul,
HOW how we can simulate the not yet implemented functionality, if by using the code then who will write the code, or the template “underconstruction” is this stub and driver. Please clarify me rahul, you are genius i saw your other postings…
susan
hi kabutaro
hello frnds ,
i have some questions for u just send me the answers
1, when do we stop testing
2, when do start testing
3, how do we evalute schedule variance
4,
This is Murty Peri
1) stop testing: This is also called Exit strategy. This is really management decision. Also called enough is enough. Based on project cost, time lines, this will be arrived. Wish full list is generated and short listed for functional performance and winded – in my opinion.
2) When to start: Once BRS and SRS is ready given to testing and development manager – it is wise to start testing. By that time, web design and data base should be ready – enough for generating scripts. All elements ids or locators are stored in Page Object Model and if needed can be changed easily.
3) Question is not clear to me.
I am Ph.D., chemistry, hydrocarbon polymer health care research background and Selenium Automation skill. Right now I am in Visakhapatnam, AP India but lives USA.
@susan
form tester prospective..
stub–simulation of not yet implemented functionality.. used in top down
driver –simulation of not yet implemented functionality
used in bottom up..
can u tell me differcence of systemtesting and end to end testing
@rahini
3) Regression testing are not applied during integration testing so it is an “incorrect statement”
Really excellent. Pts 3, 6, 7 & 8 are really g8 Challenges for Tester
Hello Vijay,
I liked article but can you elaborate second point.2) Misunderstanding of company processes:?
Its really good article
hi,
i am working as cust services executive-using visionplus.now i wish to enter into software testing-visionplus. can anyone help to know details in UAT testing.how to start career in testing.
pls mail me to shakila.rani78@gmail.com
The article is useful for both QA and management.
i would like to know onething that a tester when and which test, actually testing will start. .ex: he studied requirments sepcification docts then what is further test as a tester.will u plz answer for this question
What does mean of computer management in terms of testing?
Questioned that were asked in exams plz help:
1. Which are the fallowing procedures are related to review in veloci-Q ?
a. Proposal/ Contract review
b. Release review
c. Review
d. All of the above
2. The highlight of acceptance testing are:
a. Check the system against requirement specification
b. Testing done by customer and not by developer
c. Focuses over whether the system delivers what was requested and is informed by the business
d. All of the above
3. Test audit observation should be captured in ____________
a. Test audit report
b. Test report
c. Test observation report
d. All of the above
4. ___________ can be done with checklist, issues list, walkthroughs, and inspection meeting
a. Validation
b. Verification
c. Inspection
d. Testing
5. In the table review, who records the defects and classified errors
a. Review reader
b. Recorder
c. Reader
d. Author
6. ___________ testing should be carried out if there are multiple module in the projects
a. Unit
b. Build
c. Modules
d. Systems
7. ___________ is used to test operation and input output data to ensure that software is performing well
a. Review techniques
b. Verification
c. Software testing
d. All the above
8. ___________ are conducted to eliminate and find errors/defects in the early stage of development
a. Review and testing
b. Review
c. Validation
d. All of the above
9. Why is multiple round of testing recommended
a. Accommodate bug fixes and eliminate maximum defects
b. Shortage of resources to complete testing in one round
c. Set of test cases can be executed in each round
d. For testing basic requirement, implied requirement, performance measures in various round
10. The challenges in testing are :
a. Lack of testing tools
b. Often development effort increase and there is very little time for testing
c. Generation of adequate test cases
d. All of the above
It is very helpful article. I got some point from your article. I need some help for Software Automation.
As a manual tester I’m facing most of the challenges mentioned by you in day to day testing activity, I just wanted to share few challenges:
1) Testing new technology/domain: My company has entered into SharePoint domain (developing Intranet sites), before switching to SharePoint I was into web application testing. so once I switched to SharePoint, initially it was a new technology & lack of experienced staff for sharepoint , as a tester I struggled a lot to get to know actually what is sharepoint testing?
2) Inadequate requirements from stakeholders/Project managers: Few of my projects were not organized properly, as few projects doesn’t have BRS or FRS documents, Project managers/leads used to interact with clients directly & gathered the requirements with no proper document/ sometimes used to give us requirements orally. Due to this testing team had no proper document to refer & need to interact with project managers/leads on regular basis & gather requirements.
gr8
Well, its not like this that Tester has no importance in SDLC. Testing is one of the core steps in SDLC. Its the responsibility of the Tester to carry on a fruitful test.Developers should not worry too much , if the product is bugfree.
i had read urs manual about testing challenges.
it realy covers all aspects related 2 s/w testing challenges.really it is best effort
Yes, it’s really needful artical for freshers.
How can we perform an integration testing when there are 10 modules and some modules (module 4 and module 8) are not available while integration testing???
Friends please guide me
thank you for ur reply.
what about agenda for meeting. what exactly it means.
as per my knowledge QA is process oriented and QC is product oriented. clarify me if am wrong.
so i chose the option defect prevention. is it wrong.
hi rahul,
whats the expansion of ccb which u mentioned coz 2 CCB r there. ambiguous here.
and also i need information about ISO 9000 and CMM.
and for what kind of organizations these certifications been give. this is also interview question
options r here for ISO 9000.
a. development organizations b. product based organi..
c. service based orga.. d. hardware companies. e. none
VERY GOOD POSTING! GREAT WORK!! KEEP THE MOMENTUM GOING!! WE ARE EAGERLY EXPECTING YOUR FUTURE GOOD POSTS…. CHEERS…JK
I need few blogs and podcasts to listen to improve the quality of my work as a Quality Engineer. Also, need training on how to train other team members to use Git and Gherkin training. Someone please help, I will highly appreciate your help.
This article is too good!
i am working as a test engineer , i want to test the performance of the website using loadrunner. i have loadrunner 9.10 version
in the start recording option i have given the site url
after giving ok
the browser is not opening the site for recording.
what i should do to record the site
This article was really enriching in terms of giving an insight into real-time scenarios faced by us at sometimes in our carrier.Initially it was difficult to cope with such situations, but gradually with experience everything came under control.In my organisation the testing department was newly introduced a few months back. As a result everything had to be started from scratch when I joined the organisation.Though I myself didn’t have much experience at that time, but luckily I was aware of some of the blocks that a project/test-team has to face.But with great patience and co-operation from my team we have covered up most of the initial hazards, leading to successful installation of our product at many client places.
Thanx to this site, for reminding us again that with patience, time and experience every obstacle can be overcome very easily.
Hi,
I am very new in testing field
This is very useful article for every tester
Why we use automation testing?
What is the main roll of tester in the company?
Please give me guidance regarding that
hi,vijay
I like the pointa it will be more easy if you will elaborate the 2 and 4 point.
thank you
In which terms active X controls are useful for web testing.
Hi All,
What is the difference between Stub and drivers used in integration testing, please reply its urgent…
hi
Excellent article,
It helped me a lot .
I am a manual tester with over 12 years of experience but I really want to learn how to use test automation tools. I am not a programmer… Which programming language should I learn to prepare me for working with test automation tools such as QTP or WinRunner… Thanks for your advise in advance
This Post is wonderful, I got some realtime experience from this. More over I need some information about web testing(website). Could you please explain about the web testing and web testing check list. And also explain from where I have to start test a website.
How we use Selenium script for testing web applications?
Here we generate selenium script using Eclipse editor.
Using this script, exchange data from Excel spread sheets and relevant data base through web developed under testing.
What is needed to be a good Selenium Tester?
For very detailed testing – there are as many as 24 tests to be performed.
One can generate Selenium script right from using Web Driver class.
Automation is a very useful technique in web testing over manual testing. But it has limitation that it will not replace manual. But when test case design, beauty is that manual test case can be automated.
Testing tools helps in automation with minimum scripting knowledge but good handle on scripting from scratch will help in better utilization of tools.
For achieving this one should have clear knowledge of html, css needed for testing, detailed knowledge of java script, dom and java.
In selenium/java scripting heart is –
a) Clear knowledge of variable types, converting from one to another (Ex: Casting, parse integer), arrays, conditional statements.
b) Through knowledge of Java jar, package, sub-packages and classes like java-util, java-sql, org-apache, selenium etc., is essential.
c) Creating user defined classes and packages with constructor, procedures and functions.
d) Calling or using developed classes and packages when needed in any testing scripts.
This will save enormous amount of time and effort as they can be repeatedly used for all future testing scripts and by other testers as well.
IDE: Similar to MS plug and play, IDE comes as add- on for fire-fox driver which is plug and record.
When application is ready for testing, run IDE with recording for planned test. If this runs smooth, application as a whole of part is ready for detailed testing. Also it can be used for finding element locators easily.
Beauty of selenium will be appreciated when through with Intelligent frameworks(6).
Hybrid as the name implies uses more than one framework and transacting from one to other.
Selenium will not recognize windows:
Hence it will not handle files and Excel documents. But can be handled in Selenium using third party tools like Auto It for file uploading.
Similarly Excel documents can be managed with POIs (org apache package). Hard coded data will generally saved in Excel spread sheets. To avoid duplication, POIs will help to use hard coded data from Excel for using in Selenium – import data(input stream) and exporting results back to Excel(Output Stream).
Data base connectivity:
Much of data provided by customer and future data collected will be stored in data base. Selenium can interact with data base using job (java sol package) and class for name classes. Data stored in data base is handled using sql queries. Mostly we use data manipulation language. This is also used to delete data entered into data base while testing one test is complete.
Most skill is needed in creating Grid which simulates multiple users across different platforms browsers, web pages concurrently. This is used for Load testing for finding memory space requirements on server.
Meticulous use of wait time given is a definite skill – Selenium is much faster tool than web application. Hence short interval needs to be provided between steps like Thread sleep etc., or using java script web driver wait class. It will slow down testing time but ensures errors minimized and test stopping.
In debugging try catch block will help in providing step by step issues that help in finding solutions.
Dealing with frames, pop ups is definite requirement.
Selenium will show test results in console in mercury but will not generate any report.
Test cases written in excel. These steps in case are accessed through poi in through Input Stream and performed.
One way is to write test results in Excel using out-put-Stream and saving in Excel preferably with CSS effects.
Other most accepted way is using TestNG that generates test performance as html document for sharing with either internally or with Customer. One will be considered as automation tester who is good in using TestNG.
THIS IS THE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILL SET ESSENTIAL FOR SELENIUM AUTOMATION TESTING – this will give enough ammunition for good working.
NEVERTHLESS HANDS-ON EXPERIENCE IS THE FINAL – similar to battle field experience.
Most common problems encountered in running test?
1) Web page not found?
2) Element id, name, link text (partial or full), x-path not found?
3) File not located?
4) Data base not connected?
5) Null point exception?
These are most frequently encountered problems.
File not found exception shows as null point – means either a) path file to be corrected or extra spaces also can cause this.
b) With pois, type of class (HSSF/XSSF etc.,) and file format may not match.
c) Similar exception is with url of web.
d) Same thing may happen with data base connectivity.
Locator not found: Selenium runs much faster than web most of the times.
a) Selenium searches for locator before another page is loaded. Needs providing extra time for page display through thread sleep, either implicit or explicit methods or using web driver wait?
b) Locator changed by programmer in versions or locator being randomized rather than static for security reasons.
c) Similar issue happens with variables and declarations.
Integer declared may be required to initialize at the beginning.
Variable declaration as public static or private may cause errors.
Automation scripting from scratch for Web Applications:
Murty Peri, Ph.D., Chemistry
Hydrocarbon, Polymer, health care research scientist back ground
Worked in India, Saudi Arabia, USA.
Selenium Automation tester
Hi , I looked your summery
I want know that what is some common issue is come during automating any application , can be it’s critical ,
because I want enter in this field ,but interview’s time what are challenges you faced
plz tell me some issue occur automation
sir i am working in small company and my designation is project tester and i am testing only php web development how to develop my skills plz help me
Hi readers,
Though I have addressed many above mentioned challenges in my previous posts, I want your experience to handle such challenges.
@Simson – I agree, there are some challenges that are not in testers control like assigning testers to projects, training from company etc..As these challenges are handled at management level.
Still most of other challenges are faced by QA teams. So share your experience which will be helpful to others..
hi,
questions asked in test.
1.write any 5 test metrics.
what is test metrics.
2. following artifacts r baselined.
a.SRS b. Test cases c. minutes of meeting d.agenda for meeting e. defect reports.
3. configuration reviews r not needed if regression test has been regourously applied during software integration.
a. True b. False c. Incorrect Stmt d. None
4. customers perspective view of quality is measured by
a. surveys b. service level agreements c. recommend & loyalty d. all of these
5. in the change control procedure major changes should be approved by
a. change control board b. configuration control board c. senior manager d. It manager e. none
6. what is test design and test procedure
7. QC process involves
a. defect prevention b. casual analysis c. review walkthrough, inspection d. statistical process control.
and also send me related questions which v can predict in the interview by looking into these types of questions.
thanx in advance
rahini
I found ur website very informative, thanks for all the info. I want to know abt Test Procedure document in detail.
Hello Sir,
Thank you for the post. We have found it very useful as we have faced most of the points mentioned above in daily testing.
Dear Sir,
This post is very useful. We faced all 14 points in daily testing life.
Thanks a lot
Regards,
Mehul Fozdar
QC Analyst
its very interesting article. I m searching job in software testing and this article has added my knowledge in this field. I’ve got lots of new thing from this article. I want to know more about automation testing and its tools.
Iam not able to understand what is this APACHE AND TOMCAT SERVER is all about..are they different ?
Some say they are not and they are called as webapplication servers.By the way do application server and web server reside on the same machine or in different machines.How they are configured.
How a application server contacts webserver or vice versa..again are they configured on differnet machines .I am totally confused please help me understand this.Respond me to this e mail with your answers norman_g40@yahoo.com
welcome
really excellent, i have faced out most of the above points,
very good article
Hi Rahini,
I have Mentioned Software metrics as given below:
Introduction
Metrics are the means by which the software quality can be measured; they give you confidence in the product. You may consider these product management indicators, which can be either quantitative or qualitative. They are typically the providers of the visibility you need.
Metrics
Metrics usually fall into a few categories: project management (which includes process efficiency) and process improvement. People are often confused about what metrics they should be using. You may use different metrics for different purposes. For example, you may have a set of metrics that you use to evaluate the output of your test team. One such metric may be the project management measure of the number of bugs found. Others may be an efficiency measure of the number of test cases written, or the number of tests executed in a given period of time.
The goal is to choose metrics that will help you understand the state of your product.
Ultimately, when you consider the value of a metric, you need to ask if it provides visibility into the software product’s quality. Metrics are only useful if they help you to make sound business decisions in a timely manner. If the relevancy or integrity of a metric cannot be justified, don’t use it. Consider, for example, how management analysis and control makes use of financial reports such as profit/loss, cash flow, ratios, job costing, etc. These reports help you navigate your business in a timely manner. Engineering metrics are analogous, providing data to help perform analyses and control the development process. However, your engineers may not be the right people to give you the metrics you need to help in making business decisions, because they are not trained financial analysts. As an executive, you need to determine what metrics you want and tell your staff to provide them.
For example, coverage metrics are essential for your team. Coverage is the measure of some amount of testing. You could have requirements coverage metrics, platform coverage metrics, path coverage metrics, scenario coverage metrics, or even test plan coverage metrics, to name a few. Cem Kaner lists over 100 types of coverage measures in his paper “Negligence and Testing Coverage.” Before the project starts, it is important to come to agreement on how you will measure test coverage. Obviously, the more coverage of a certain type, the less risk associated with that type.
The goal is to choose metrics that will help you understand the state of your product. Wisely choose a handful of these metrics specific to your type of project and use them to give you visibility into how close the product is to release. The test group needs to be providing you plenty of useful information with these metrics.
Conclusion
The metrics provided by testing offer a major benefit to executives: visibility into the maturity and readiness for release or production, and visibility into the quality of the software product under development. This enables effective management of the software development process, by allowing clear measurement of the quality and completeness of the product.
You have explained it very well. Thank you 🙂
Perfect explaination thanks
Grt post….thanQ
What are the challenges faced by testers while doing network testing manually?
😉 nice wrk
I have read so many articles and books but,notting as like this website is providing.It is doing wonders for people who want to hone there skills in testing.I think many people would not be able to list out some of the testing challenges listed above.Great going ..keep up with your good work …
Hello, i have a question. Does anybody know how to do security testing on a web base application using QTP?. If so can you pls e-mail me or contact me. I really do need to know about the security testing and how i go about it. e-mail: kajohnson00@gmail.com
Thanks
excellent post this one who gain knowledge over on software testing
Hi , i read the all your comments, it is really nice, Currently i am working software testing in hyderabad,
Actually i am a tamilian, my native place is chennai,
My qualification is BCA only, Now i am searching software testing job in chennai,
i am fresher also, i do know how can i search software testing jobs.
Can you tell me anybody for the correct way to search software testing job and also tell me the any software testing institiute in chennai place.
@Rahini
1>defect mat2>req . mat 3>tracebility mat 4>
2>it could be a.SRS b. Test cases but in most of cases SRS gets priority
4>b
5>CCB
6>test proce–order in which test cases are executed
test design–we focus in designing TC
7> d. statistical process control.
Excellent……
Hi all,
Excellent points that each tester to know…. keep posting these type of points…
Regards,
Vinku
i am working as BA & also involved in testing . So i want to know how to handle the complex scenarios in testing ? for example if we testing a module which will be consisting of too many data and within less amount of time we need to prepare test cases and test the entire module.
Hi
Thank You George, i am also thinking in that way..
Hi Rahul,
It all depends on your Application/Testing Environment
Ex:
Suppose, your application has lots of files into a particular directory and you want to check for a particular string which is present in each and every file
without actually opening all the files ,check for the string present and increment the count )
You can write an automated perl script which opens all the files,search for the string and display the result which can save your lot of effort.
Perl Testing: A Developer’s Notebook can resolve all of you question . if you can find one. 🙂
Regards,
Tiger2k
Hi Friends,
Currently i am working in Non-IT field and planned to switch my career to testing.I had learned the basics of testing,and now i am very eager to learn testing practically with real time projects.
If any one interested to teach testing personally with real time projects , i will be more grateful, or else show me the right place in chennai.
Thanks & regards
selvam.ba@rediffmail.com
@sumit
Specify which post helped you a lot
Hi,
I have a windows based tool which I need to automate by UFT or any other automation tool, but the problem is I am not able to identify the objects of that tool, the tool is developed in openInsight technology.
Please help
Thanks
Excellent article,
Hello guys,
well this article is very informative but i have a question related to automation testing, can we perform automation testing on dynamic objects? like report grid which has different number of records each time it is loaded. Or dropdowns with dynamic values integrated with any other report. I worked on Aap Perfect but didnt get sloution for dis. Do let me know if u guys can resolve this querry. 🙂
Hey,Thanks for this post. It really helps us a lot.
I must sday this is the excellent post.
Hi Suresh Balakrishnan,
Its very nice, simple, complete
hi help details abt banking domain
or send me the details pranutha.peddi@gmail.com
Excelent article…Though there are some challenges which are not exactly related to Testing but they are somehow related to it…
I would like to share my experiences –
1. QC Manager – I joined my current comapny in May 2006 which was a CMMi Level 3 (??). My manager is very ambisious and some how I managed to impress him with my initial work. He left me with the team to handle all the activities and he himself was involved in higher level management decisions. I was never given a walkthrough on the company process. Whatever I could get was through word of mouth. Everything was going smooth till yesterday when a customer reported that the she is not going to test the application using the test cases as they are no in the way she is going to test (She has approved the earlier version of same test cases). Now I have been asked that how can we send the system test cases to customer, which I do agree that we should send only UAT test cases which will be a subset of system cases. But this was the practice I have been following since last 2 years as I learned from the processes of the company.
Lesson Learned –
1. You will not receive the heat till customer is happy.
2. Never believe Managers,
Invaluable analysis ! I loved the details ! Does someone know if I might acquire a blank a form example to work with ?
Hi Mahesh
Q)When to start and Stop Testing?
A)When system meets the requirement and there is no change in functionality.
As u said it’s most important how tester handle all these challenges.
Some challenges are not in control of QA team like selection and appointment of testers over the projects 😉
Managements are really facing hard problems retaining the talent especially in countries like India where supply and demand is becoming critical.
Not really.
We have excellent pool of people who can serve but identifying and process is more complicated.
I am Murty Peri, Ph.D., Chemistry Hydrocarbon, Polymer, health care research scientist back ground
Worked in India, Saudi Arabia, USA. and Selenium Automation skill added. Right now I am Vizag, AP India. I am ready to participate work with any IT firm for another year while I am here.
Hi All,
Really its a very gre8 article.
Awsome…
by Reading this document now i am able to understand that all automation stuffs
this professional is following some x institutes notes .
in real time some facts are not mentioned
hi this is very useful for every body who are going to face projects and helpfull how to interact with the developers and wt qualities should tester have.
thanks
if anything pls dend to me thank you.
tell me retesting and regassiontesting
Hi
This is really a wonderful articel. I have recently joined this sector i m enjoying alot.
But I have one hesitation that I was in Travel industry and now I m doing software testing course can i use my travel experience here plz advice.
Ahmer Hussain
I do not have problems with manual testing but do have automation testing problems
1.Automating Apps that have more than one modules, e.g admin and customer modules that relates with each other
2. Compiling testcases to be automated across the modules. once i get to these point,i get overwhelmed
i feel like there’s something wrong with my automation learning process..like i need a guidance of an instructor..please help fams
HI all
I want to know about banking domain.can anyone tell be any ideas or websites to start with
THANKS
what are the main steps to be performed during manual testing.As im fresher in this .
Hi frnds,
plz., send me qtp interview qnos.
murali0734@gmail.com
Hi Vijay/Suresh/Tiger2K ,
I am regular visitor of this site.I have one major concern for that i need ur assistance.
Whats the use of unix as well as shell Scrpiting(PERL) in sw Testing Prospective?
As we all are familiar QTP is used to validate UI Validation .Load Runner is used to Check Virtual User and all .So i could understand where QTP/Manual/Load Runner fits in software Testing World.
But i am still dont know where unix as well as shell Scrpiting(PERL) find its place in testing world? Could any1 assist me to understand this very clearly ?
So please help me understand this with how and where it finds its place in Software Testing
Thanks,
Rahul
Is the book available in India?
Hi,
I am in testing field for past 6 years. I am ready to give training in testing field even I can help you with the interview process and procedure. If anyone interested mail me to “aptautomationtester@gmail.com”.
Regards,
Guru
hi sir my name is sunil i am form karnataka and i need ur help.
really its very useful for testing people who is not clarity on their doubts. I got so many clarifitions.
articles r very interesting n used simple words to undstand nice work.
thnks a lot. keep it up!
hi help details about banking domain (or) send me the details “kavitharajbe@gmail.com”
Great article! These are the exact challenges we are trying to overcome at Testing Algorithms, LLC. by innovating various algorithms. So far we have come up with a modelling approach that helps in reducing the impacts of point 1, 4-10 & 12. With this solution, behavior of a software application can be captured using a model, that can be automatically converted to prioritized and optimized test cases in no time. Request you all to visit http://www.testingalgorithms.com and share your feedback.
Thank you so much..great article
Hi,
Is really wonderful doc. its very helpful in myself. If those doc are in .pdf then reading easily. I also involved in IT industry (Testing )
Being a Test Leader this post help me lot.
Grt post….thanQ
Hello all,
I am into Manual Testing for quite sometime now. I have a complicated task infront of me. I have to test the load of an ASP.NET application using the VSTS 2008. I went around the VSTS and had some success in creating small web tests, but couldn’t proceed further. I was also informed that the tests need some coding to be done. Coding and me are poles apart. My questions are:
1. Any suggestions on sites / articles to handle the basic errors encountered in the VSTS web tests?
2. Can anyone suggest any sites / articles, apart from the MSDN, for the basic coding practices?
Informative
how to create own bug tracking tool
hi,
i had read urs manual about testing challenges.
it realy covers all aspects related 2 s/w testing challenges.really it is best effort……………………
thanx..
what is the use of xml in web testing?
What is the major diffrence between Manual testing and Automation testing.
Please help me out anybody
Grt post….thanQ
hi,
questions asked in test.
1.write any 5 test metrics.
what is test metrics.
2. following artifacts r baselined.
a.SRS b. Test cases c. minutes of meeting d.agenda for meeting e. defect reports.
3. configuration reviews r not needed if regression test has been regourously applied during software integration.
a. True b. False c. Incorrect Stmt d. None
4. customers perspective view of quality is measured by
a. surveys b. service level agreements c. recommend & loyalty d. all of these
5. in the change control procedure major changes should be approved by
a. change control board b. configuration control board c. senior manager d. It manager e. none
6. what is test design and test procedure
7. QC process involves
a. defect prevention b. casual analysis c. review walkthrough, inspection d. statistical process control.
and also send me related questions which v can predict in the interview by looking into these types of questions.
thanx in advance
Excellent. As a testers we have to overcome all the points
I think organization should reward not basis on number of bugs he/she found,but on the minor and minimum number of bugs missed after project is deployed.
Hi..Great study. I am a B.E student really it was very useful for me to gain at least some hint like knowledge… But can you please help me by making me understand how Testers will handle a complex situation I mean a bigger Manual test. Will they be using any algorithms ?? If so which is preferred EA or ACO? And Why?
Thanks… 🙂
Hello Friends,
I would like to know which type of testing(Manual or Automation) is better for our career and why?
Both is must Manual testing is simple. But in automation need programming language like Java.
I disagree. If you do it right, manual testing is not simple. Just following a pre-written test script, yes, that’s easy – but when you think deeply about how to break the software you can uncover bugs the developers would never have considered, even those deep in supporting systems like databases and network APIs.
I’ve been a freelance tester for 30 years and have worked on systems where the client has engaged nothing but automated test engineers and yes, they have comprehensively covered the system in tests that prove it does what it should, however, one or two weeks of proper manual (exploratory) testing and I can usually throw up 50 to 100 defects of which 10% might be critical under the right circumstances.
The other mistake I see often is over use of UI level automation, ignoring API tests. Lots of my clients have invested heavily in Selenium and use it to test every function of the SUT. This leaves them with a brittle framework that is expensive to maintain, when exercising the APIs directly by chaining requests can perform end to end tests to fully cover basic API contract requirements.
Yes of course Selenium has its place for exercising the UI, but I would expect a 75/25 ratio in favour of API tests (maybe using REST-Assured, Postman etc.) building on the base of Unit tests created by the developers. Often I see either the reverse of that ratio or 100% UI automation tests.
Jagadish,
Slowly develop your skills on automation, this will help you in the long run. Manual testing job is very easy and juniors will be given preference for it. As you grow in your career, Automations skill will give you upper hand.
Initially while learning you may feel it challenging, but just dont give up. In no time youll get hold of it. Choose opensource automation tool like Selenium, youll get lot of free online support to learn it. Just take up one tool and grasp all the concepts in it. Thats it and youll be able to easily switch to any other tools if required as the concepts will remain the same irrespective of tool.
Automation is always a plus. Try with opensource tool like Selenium
Stubs and Drivers
stubs are used in top down integartion. It simulates the activity of a lower level component.
Drivers are used in bottom up integration which simulates the activity of a higher level component
To be frank, I do not have any knowledge of testing but want to join any Testing Institute.
Please help me how to get a job as a tester after these many years as a BPO employee
Well maybe gain some knowledge of testing first? Do some projects outside of work which enable you to learn the basics of testing and then demonstrate the understanding at an interview for a junior testing position?
After studying the requirement specifications, testers job is to start writing the test cases with respect to the functional specification given to you by the client
@Nisha
You dont worry, you are in the right pool. You can download a free bug tracking tool from the net say for an example ‘Qengine issuemanager’ and configure it for your company needs and thereby you can impress your company people. And if you can place some ERP experience, it will be an advantage in your further job changes. You are getting a chance to implement testing srategies in your company, that agian will be a plus. Then now you are thinking either they are not willing for your suggestions for the new quality plans or how can i implement all these and more in a new environment. God bless you… leave your doubts today itself
Excellent
Hi mahesh,
There is no destination time to stop the testing. it is stoped when the build meets the client requirements without any bugs in the build.
When the functional specification doc. is given to you, then you start writing the test cases with respect to the doc. ans once the developed build comes to the testing environment then testers start executing the test cases and the bugs which u get will be locked in the DTT , which is used by ur company.
Hi Everyone,
This is Ragu, i have 2 years of experience in software testing. Now am looking for change, i don’t know interviewer how to ask question. Because till know i didn’t attend single interview. Am getting job this company as a trainee, now 2 years completed . i have done 3 projects in testing. Is this possible i get a job. Then how to prepare interview. Please any one help me..
Am expecting your reply..
thanking You
varantest@gmail.com
Hi;
I was really pleased to atlast find a website as this one that does not make me go round the bush and make me realise that i have wasted my time.
I would really like to appreciate your efforts.
Nice one..
Hello,
I like your article.
Apart from challenges mentioned I would like to add two more challanges which I faced.
1. Data Assertion Criteria.How Much data will be sufficient to test is always difficult to decide.
2. Second one is difficult to Automate the ETL testing.
Regards
Superb!!! 🙂
Excellent Post. I have faced most of the above listed challenges.
Idon’t know if I am too late in this series of posting comments . Would like to tell abt my self . I was into development for 4 years in .NET C# and have moved into testing ,(Automation , for Selenim -Python) . I basically made this decision coz of my intrest in Process. But when i came into my new company for Testing ,I found they don’t follow as such any process. So i am not happy with this . Not geeting gud learning hear , in terms of process. What should i Do.
Excellent Article. I also in the testing field for more than two years, Manual testing. Recently i joined in a new company. Their interviews were standard, having 4 rounds such as aptitude test, technical test, techincal interview and hr interview. What happened is, only after joined there i found i was mistaken. Actually they didn’t have testing stratagey. didn’t bug tracking tools etc. What they had is some untested softwares, which they developed for some of their own companies, all their modules constitutes an ERP package. Now i am in delima what to do. Can anyone find a solution, whether continue with this company for 1 yr or look for another. Plssss help me..
good going…. keep up the good work
Your suggestions would be greatly appreciated, thank you all.
can any1 tell me how 2prepare 4Apti?? der r so many questions frm ver to start? i hav RS Agrawal book …n in how many days u can cover the necessary study 4Apti….Plzzzz ….help
Hi All,
I am working in BPO field for the last 3 years. Now I want to move to the Testing field. Which one do you people suggest (Manual or Automated) testing.
How do I prepare to complish my goal to join as a tester?
hi
6x4qb74ui4ti3waz
good luck
hi frnds,
What it frame work? How is it use ful in Manual & Automation? plz., guide us.