How to Test PWAs: Part 1
We are starting our new articles series where Maria Maksimova, QA lead at Red Collar shares her insights on how to prepare for PWA testing and make it more efficient. Let's roll!
There are many differing opinions, methodologies, and best practices when it comes to testing Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) — some even contradicting one another. At Red Collar, we decided to experiment with several approaches to find what works best for testing these applications.
I’m Maria Maximova, QA Lead at Red Collar, and in this article, I'll share the key guidelines and testing patterns we've found most valuable.
TL;DR: At the end of the article, you'll find a handy checklist summarizing everything you need to know about PWA testing.
What is a Progressive Web App (PWA)?
A Progressive Web App (PWA) is a web application that leverages modern web technologies to deliver a user experience similar to native mobile apps. PWAs combine the best features of both websites and apps, offering users speed, convenience, and offline functionality.
PWAs also provide several advantages over traditional mobile apps:
One crucial factor in choosing PWAs is cost. PWAs are often more cost-effective to develop and maintain compared to full-scale apps, making them a popular choice for businesses.
From a QA perspective, PWAs are designed to mimic the look and feel of native apps, aiming to recreate the user's experience — without the need for installation.
Example: Think of visiting Duolingo’s website on your phone — it’s essentially a PWA in action.
I want to highlight that a PWA isn't downloaded from an app store — it's installed directly from the website.
PWA Specifics
A PWA works on any device and browser that supports web standards. This means PWAs offer a consistent user experience across multiple platforms and devices. However, not all browsers support PWAs — for instance, Mozilla dropped PWA support in Firefox 85 . Be sure to keep your information up to date!
PWAs automatically adapt to different screen sizes and device types, ensuring a seamless, user-friendly experience on both mobile and desktop devices.
A lengthy but important list of methods used to achieve adaptability in PWAs
The adaptability of Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) is achieved through the following tools and technologies:
1. Responsive Design
? CSS Media Queries: Media queries allow CSS to automatically adjust styles based on device characteristics like screen width, height, orientation (portrait or landscape), and resolution.
? Flexible Grids: By using flexible grids with units like percent, em, and rem, elements can adjust to different screen sizes.
? Flexible Images: CSS properties like max-width: 100% enable images and other media to scale, preventing them from exceeding container boundaries.
领英推荐
2. Viewport Meta Tag
The viewport meta tag allows control over the visible area and scaling of a page on mobile devices.
3. Spacing
Using flexible and relative units for padding and margins ensures elements are proportionally positioned across different screen sizes.
4. Frameworks and Libraries
? Bootstrap: A popular framework for responsive design, offering predefined classes for grids, buttons, and other components.
? Foundation: Another robust framework that provides powerful tools for creating responsive layouts.
5. Flexbox and CSS Grid
Flexbox: Enables the creation of flexible layouts that easily adjust to screen size changes.
CSS Grid: Allows for the design of complex, adaptive layouts using grid containers.
6. JavaScript and Libraries
? JavaScript: Dynamically modify the DOM and CSS based on screen size and other device characteristics.
? Adaptive Design Libraries: Tools like react-responsive apply adaptive styles to React components.
Offline Operation PWAs use caching and Service Worker technologies to enable functionality without an internet connection.
Install as an App A PWA can be installed on your phone, creating a shortcut icon on your home screen for easy access.
Installation via Push Notifications The website can provide users with a direct link for quick installation.
Push Notifications PWAs support push notifications, allowing updates and alerts to be sent even when the app is closed. If a user disables notifications in the browser where the PWA operates, they won't receive any updates. This is similar to how notifications work in native apps: if notifications are turned off, the user won’t receive them.
Performance PWAs load faster and deliver a smoother experience compared to traditional websites. This is achieved through caching techniques and code optimization.
HTTPS PWAs require HTTPS for secure data transfer, protecting users from attacks.
Upgradability PWAs update automatically in the background, ensuring the app is always up to date. However, in offline mode, the app can't retrieve new updates or resources from the server until the internet connection is restored.
When offline, the PWA will continue to function using cached data managed by the Service Worker. Once back online, the Service Worker will check for updates, download new resources, and cache them to keep the app current. (A Service Worker is a script that runs in the background, handling resource caching to maintain offline functionality.)
Subscribe to our newsletter!
?? Get an estimate of your digital idea ?? [email protected]
Software Engineer || React || Node || Express || SQL
1 个月This is a great resource. I’m building my first PWA for a client as we speak! Thanks for this ??