Explain Rapise - Web Functional/Regression Test Tool

In this world of web–based applications, every application is unique and therefore its testing needs are also different from the other applications. To satisfy all those different testing requirements, environments, specifications, scenarios and so on we require many different testing tools. So a number of web functional/ regression testing tools have been developed and all of them possess some unique features that suit to needs of the different testers. 

In this article we discuss about one such web functional/ regression tool called Rapise that has been developed by the Inflectra inc. 

About Rapise

- This tool provides a platform for functional test automation. 

- The architecture of this tool is quite open and can be extended if required. 

- These two qualities make it very flexible for testing the applications.

- Rapise has built–in cross–browser testing capabilities that support several versions of the following web browsers:

1. Microsoft internet explorer
2. Mozilla firefox and
3. Google chrome

- It supports the following applications:

1. Ajax
2. GWT
3. YUI
4. Flash/ flex
5. AIR
6. Silverlight and so on.

- Microsoft excel spreadsheets can be used for following approaches such as keyword driven testing and data driven testing.

- Rapise identifies the objects based up on CSS and Xpath. 

- Rapise comes with a built–in OCR i.e., optical character recognition.

- It relies on JavaScript for scripting purpose. 

- An open format is used for storing the scripts as well as the identified objects unlike other tools that store them in a database or a proprietary binary file. 

- The JavaScript editor included with Rapise is full function edition and has a feature called the automatic code completion. 

- An active JavaScript debugger that is plug-gable plus has watches and break points, is also included in Rapise tool. 

- Rapise has made cross browser testing much easier than before. 

- This is all because of the cross – browser testing capabilities that are of the best standard and multiple browser versions as mentioned earlier in the article. 

- You have the choice of recording and creating one test script and executing the same in all the major browsers without making any modifications to it. 

- Rapise claims to have the most flexible as well as the powerful test automation features ever available in the market. 

Features of Rapise Testing Tool

Below we mention some features of Rapise testing tool:

1. Learn and go functionality: This lets you create test scripts rapidly. This works in a more efficient manner than what traditional recording and playback methods we have. The editing of the object takes place during the learning process.
2. Keyword driven testing and data driven testing
3. Windows and web application testing
4. Can be extended using Javascript
5. Adobe AIR and Flash support
6. Supports DevExpress, Infragistics and telerik controls.
7. Support for Qt framework
8. Integrated reporting capabilities that are very powerful.
9. Integration with SpiraTest for effective test management.

- This tool has leveraged the power of extensible architecture by a great measure. 

- For user, the JavaScript source code has been made available for library recognition as well as execution. 

- All these features let you automate the test where other testing tools are bound to fail. 

- With such advanced features, Rapise can be called as the most customizable, extensible and flexible test automation tool. 

- Key functions can be modified by the users as per their requirement and the recording aspects can be customized with the help of custom plug – in libraries. - Since Rapise is using Javascript, a broad range of users can access it.  

Explain the QTP Tool interface?

The tool interface of the quick test professional is the focus of this article. The tool interface of the quick test professional consists of certain elements:

1. Title bar: This bar displays or holds the name of the test that is currently open.
2. Menu bar: This bar holds all the quick test commands that one may need often.
3. File tool bar: This bar holds all the quick test commands or tools that one may need in the management of the tests.
4. Test tool bar: This bar holds all the quick test commands or tools that may are required in the creation as well as management of the tests.
5. Debug tool bar: This bar holds all the quick test commands that may be required while debugging of the tests. Usually this bar is not displayed along with the other bars when the quick test professional is launched. If the quick test professional is not displaying the debug bar by default then you need to go to the view and select debug tool bar from the tool bars sub list.
6. Status bar: This bar displays the current status of the test that is currently under execution.
7. Action tool bar: This bar holds a list of actions using which one can view the individual details of the whole test flow or an individual test or action. Just like the debug tool bar this tool bar is also not displayed by the quick test professional by default. For displaying it along with the other bars you need to go to the view menu and select action tool bar from the sub list of the tool bars. But if you have inserted an external action or a reusable action in to your test scripts, then the quick test professional displays the action tool bar automatically.
8. Test pane: This pane consists of two tabs which enable the viewing of the test in two view modes namely: the expert view and the key word view or the tree view.
9. Test details pane: This pane holds the active screen of the quick test professional.
10. Data table: This table consists of two tabs namely: the action tab and the global tab. Both of these tabs together provide you assistance during the parameterization of your tests.
11. Debug viewer pane: This pane consists of three tabs namely, the expressions, the commands and the variables. All of these 3 tabs provide you assistance while you debug your tests. However, there is one issue with debug viewer pane which is that you can open it only when you pause the test run at a break point.

As we know that the quick test professional provides two standard views as well way to modify the test scripts namely:

1. Key word view and
2. The expert view

- It is because of these views that the quick test professional is said to possess an IDE or integrated development environment. 

- The quick test professional comes with several standard IDE features like break points etc.

- The scripting language that is used by the quick test professional i.e., the VBScript provides support for the classes but not for the other aspects of object oriented programming like inheritance, polymorphism etc. 

- It lacks some other features such as:

1. Cannot use some visual basic key words.
2. Does not have an integrated debugger.
3. No event handler
4. No forms editor

- The debugger has got a limited functionality when compared with the debuggers of java, VBA, VB.NET and so on. 

Define the scripting techniques for test automation?

The main goal of the test automation process is that a highly maintainable and modular frame work should be developed. In a good automated test framework all the modules are independent and distinct from each other and what is happening inside the frame work are not a thing to be bothered by the outsiders. This is all possible with good test scripts. 

Why Scripts are useful?

- With the help of the scripts, the functionality contained inside each module can be readily expanded without causing any impact on other parts of the software system and application.

- Such scripting makes the maintenance of the program code much easier than ever it would be. 

- In addition to this, the complexity of the module will also be reduced with such good scripting. 

- However, maintaining the modularity of the frame work alone will not help, the test scripts should be fully documented. 

- Without adequate documentation, no body will be able to understand properly the working of the test scripts. 

- If this scripting has not been done properly than our test automation process is sure to become a negative statistic for us. 

What are different Scripting Techniques for Test Automation?

1. Linear scripting technique: 

- This scripting technique is quite a simple one and follows simple recording and playback. 

- This is often used by the testers and developers for carrying out the automation of the test cases as well as test flows of the software system or application under question. 

- This technique consists of some redundant functions that are not always required. 

- Some other features of this technique are:

(a)   It is a non structured way of scripting.

(b)   Scripts define the test cases.

(c)    Low development costs.

(d)   Scripts are not shared.

(e)   Scripts are fragile.

     2. Structured scripting: 

     - This scripting technique employs the control structures in the scripts. 

   - With these control structures the testers are able to control the flow of the test cases and scripts. 

    - This one unlike the linear technique is a structured way of scripting and costs a little more. 

    - Its other features are:

     (a) Scripts define the test cases.

     (b) Testers require intermediate programming skills. 

      (c)  Some planning is required.

     (d)  Scripts consist of data as hard core. 

      (e)  Scripts are robust and require less maintenance.

     (f)   Scripting knowledge and programming knowledge is required.

    3. Shared scripting:

   - In this scripting technique, the scripts represent the behavior of the application that is shared among the other scripts. 

    - The functionality is scripted as shared scripts which are then called by the other scripts. 

    - Using technique can make the scripts modular in terms of the functionality that is common.

    - Other features of this scripting technique are:

    (a)  Structured scripts.

    (b)  Scripts define test cases.

    (c)  Low development costs.

    (d)  More planning required.

    (e)  Low script maintenance.

    4. Data driven scripting: 

  - In this scripting technique, the data is kept separated from the scripts and stored in to the external repository as files. 

   - We can say that these scripts are constituted of just programmed code. 

   - Other features of this scripting technique are:

   (a)  Scripts are programmed.

   (b)  Scripts are structured.

   (c)  Test scripts define test cases.

   (d)  High development costs when compared to shared scripting.

   (e)  High programming skills required.

   (f)  Data is isolated. Low script maintenance.

   (g)  Is used where both negative and positive data testing is required.

   5. Key word driven testing: 

   - This scripting technique develops scripts that are used to check and execute the operations that are maintained with the externalized data files. 

   - We can call it as an extension of the data driven scripting technique.