Book Excerpt - Science of Selenium - Ch-1 Introduction to Test Automation
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Book Excerpt - Science of Selenium - Ch-1 Introduction to Test Automation

Kalilur Rahman Kalilur Rahman

Kalilur Rahman

Director @ Novartis | Technology Transformation Leader| Author | Ex-Accenture/Cognizant/TCS | Life Long Learner | Quizzer | Mentor | Speaker | Influencer | Operations | Consulting | Quality Engineering

发布日期: 2020年1月19日
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Dear All

Using this forum to share some excerpts to raise the interest levels of the book I wrote and published through BPB Publications. I will share some excerpts every week to get your inputs and suggestions for future work.

This week, I am focusing on the first chapter - Introduction to Test Automation. This covers the following aspects

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction to Test Automation - introduces the concepts of test automation. It describes how to approach test automation including the challenges and approach. It also explains the importance of using test automation.

Chapter 1: Introduction to Test Automation

“Debugging is twice as hard as writing the code in the first place. Therefore, if you write the code as cleverly as possible, you are, by definition, not smart enough to debug it.” —Brian W. Kernighan (Inventor of UNIX Operating System & Author of “The C Programming Language”)

Automation has been a productivity enhancer for humankind. With the advent of exponential growth in technology, how can we automate testing of the millions of lines of code churned every hour? This is where test automation plays a vital role – automating the testing of the automation tools to enhance the productivity of humankind. Test automation will be an essential part of the productivity growth of humanity. Without test automation, the release of quality code to production will become an activity equivalent to boiling an ocean. To do good quality product development, one should understand the importance of testing. To do rapid, efficient and productive testing, one should understand the importance of test automation.

This chapter focuses on why test automation is very important. For a good test automation engineer, the fundamentals of test automation are must-have. He or she ought to know why, which, when and how test automation is essential. This chapter covers an introduction to why do we need test automation, what are the methods and tools we can leverage, when to do with test automation and how to get on with it. If a test automation engineer is thorough with these fundamentals, then the interview will be a smooth ride. This chapter describes key aspects of test automation that would be useful.

Structure of the Chapter ==> What is automation? / Introduction to test automation / Benefits of test automation / History of test automation / Generations of test automation and evolution / Introduction to different types of test automation / Test automation framework / What tests to automate / Test automation challenges / Test Automation Interview – Q & A

What is Automation?

The definition of “Automation” as per Wikipedia is “Automation is the technology by which a process or procedure is performed with minimal human assistance.” Any process or an activity done by a human in a repetitive manner involving motor or cognitive functions is a candidate for automation. From time immemorial, automation propelled every industrial revolution. On the other hand, the success of the industrial revolution was automation. Mechanical automation drove the first industrial revolution, with mechanical engines improving productivity such as steam engines and the use of tools for agricultural and mining production. The automation of mobility with the invention of wheel by Sumerians helped humans to become more agile. The automation of the printing process by Gutenberg helped propel the dissemination of knowledge in a rapid manner. The invention of the steam engine by James Watt and the first industrial train (“The Rocket”) by George Stephenson helped propel the movement of goods in a faster manner during the industrial revolution of the 19th Century. Other automation processes such as telegraph, telephony helped humans communicate better and efficiently. The automation of manufacturing with the assembly line process introduced by Henry Ford for Model-T car paved way for producing good, rapid and cheaper motorcars. The use of robotics with a focus on concepts of quality management like just in time, Kanban etc., helped produce products with precision and consistency and good quality. Thus, automation of production and assembly line aided by the electricity, just in time assembly and other innovations helped the second industrial revolution. The third industrial revolution is all about automation through computer systems. The advances in electronics, identification of transistors, chips and rapid processors helped humans automate and fast track computing, thereby propelling all of the industries to leapfrog. Finally, the fourth industrial revolution is all about the use of AI, robotics and other means to automate the automation process itself. Hence, automation has been and will be critical in the evolution of humankind.

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History of test automation

To understand the history of test automation, we need to first understand some of the key progress made in terms of software testing and then in test automation. Let us study them:

  • 1958 – First independent testing consultants incorporated in the PROJECT MERCURY program.
  • In 1961 – Leeds and Weinberg published the first chapter on Program testing  in the book “Computer Programming  Fundamentals”.
  • 1962 – Automatic Program Testing by IBM’s Renfe becomes the first full- fledged testing book.
  • In the 1970’s, test automation picked up steam, TRW and IBM published first papers on test automation. The first seminal book on software testing was published in the early 70s – Program Test  Methods.
  • Even IBM Mainframe computers had automation tools such as SIMON or OLIVER that helped automate user interfaces or batch program execution. Test automation picked up steam in the most established computing systems of the time – Mainframes.
  • NASA’s Johnson Space Centre built an automated tool called Automated Test Data Generator in 1976 for testing purposes. (https://dl.acm.org/ citation. cfm?id=805646 ). This was the first proven use of test data generation for testing and test automation.
  • Test automation picked up steam with the growth of personal computers and desktop software. By late 1980s, software testing tool companies such as Segue, Mercury came into limelight.
  • 1995 – First test automation book – “Automated Testing Handbook” by Linda G Hayes was published. Linda Hayes started a software company that has become a popular test management software – Worksoft  Certify.
  •  1999 – Software Test Automation by Mark Fewster and Dorothy Graham  – Strategy, Tactics and Issues became the defacto guide for test automation  and test engineers.
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Questions at the end of the chapter:

  1. Will you recommend 100% test automation, that is, automation of all testing activities? Where will you use 100% test automation?
  2. What are the types of test cases one should avoid from automation scope?
  3. Would you suggest test automation for product build verification, dry run, and sanity testing of applications? If so, how will you use them?
  4. What kind of tests would you automate?
  5. What is the benefit of modular scripts over the record-and-playback type of test automation?
  6. What are some of the key elements to consider while defining a test automation framework?
  7. What are some of the different generations of test automation framework?
  8. What is a data-driven test automation framework?
  9. What is a keyword-driven test automation framework?
  10. What is a hybrid test automation framework?
  11. Can you outline some of the stages in a test automation lifecycle?
  12. What are some of the automation approaches you can choose for test automation?
  13. What are some of the key measures of test automation success?
  14. How can you use test automation for data generation?
  15. What are some of the myths you heard about test automation? What is your take
  16. Assume you are asked to automate testing of a massively used application such as Google Maps. Can this be done? What will be your approach?
  17. What are some of the famous test automation tools?
  18. Will you start test automation before development starts?
  19. How will you automate the testing of AI applications?

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Conclusion

Hope you enjoyed the excerpts from Chapter-1. What are your comments?

Book Availability

The book is available at the following sites

Note:- Title Images are created using CANVA tools. Authors of the quote referred where known. Most of the information shared is generic and available in various forms in the Internet. Respective trademarks are owned by corresponding firms. Opinions about tools highlighted are from a personal experience standpoint and in no way reflect the views of my current or past employers or clients.

#WhatInspiresMe #Automation #Selenium #KRPoints #TestAutomation #DevOps #AITesting #NewAgeTesting #MobileTestAutomation

Anne Thornley-Brown MBA

Team building Expert | LinkedIn Top Voice | Forbes featured | I help executives manage change, foster innovation, & boost their bottom line ???? ???? Actress ?? Writer ?? ???

4 年

Actually I have been meaning to launch a book excerpt series on here. If I do will you participate?

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Rishad Ahmed ╰☆╮

Master Leadership Coach | Keynote Speaker |Author | Bringing Wisdom to Modern Leadership | 75k+ followers

4 年

Fantastic post Kalilur Rahman ??

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Ms. Suchi

Top Community Voice |Laughter Coach | Mentor NTU| Number 1 Favikon Influencer~ Fitness & Personal Growth!!

4 年

????????

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Kalilur Rahman

Director @ Novartis | Technology Transformation Leader| Author | Ex-Accenture/Cognizant/TCS | Life Long Learner | Quizzer | Mentor | Speaker | Influencer | Operations | Consulting | Quality Engineering

4 年

Nrip Jain?Manish Jain?Nitin Dasan?Sourabh Dwivedi

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Ahmad Imam

?? Award-Winning Executive Branding Specialist | I Help Executives Build a C-Suite Personal Brand | Founder & CEO - The Executive Brand | Advisor To The Royal Office UAE | International Speaker

4 年

Congratulations on your book Kalilur Rahman and thank you for sharing part of it

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