Difference between revisions of "THINK OUT-OF-THE-BOX"

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* <span style="font-size: 16px">Sleep over it: sometimes in the evening a problem hovers like an impregnable wall, but in the morning suddenly the wall has become much lower!</span>
 
* <span style="font-size: 16px">Sleep over it: sometimes in the evening a problem hovers like an impregnable wall, but in the morning suddenly the wall has become much lower!</span>
 
=<span style="font-size: 16px">'''Potential problems'''</span>=
 
=<span style="font-size: 16px">'''Potential problems'''</span>=
<span style="font-size: 16px">If you don't get a better idea immediately, use what you have: a not so good solution is still much better then no solution at all</span>
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<span style="font-size: 16px">If you don't get a better idea immediately, use what you have: a not so good solution is still much better than no solution at all</span>
 
=<span style="font-size: 16px">'''Issues addressed by this pattern'''</span>=
 
=<span style="font-size: 16px">'''Issues addressed by this pattern'''</span>=
 
''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[ COMPLEX ENVIRONMENT]]</span>''<br /> ''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[HARD-TO-AUTOMATE]]</span>''<br /> ''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[MANUAL MIMICRY]]</span>''<br /> ''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[MULTIPLE PLATFORMS]]</span>''<br /> ''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[UNAUTOMATABLE TEST CASES]]</span>''
 
''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[ COMPLEX ENVIRONMENT]]</span>''<br /> ''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[HARD-TO-AUTOMATE]]</span>''<br /> ''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[MANUAL MIMICRY]]</span>''<br /> ''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[MULTIPLE PLATFORMS]]</span>''<br /> ''<span style="font-size: 16px">[[UNAUTOMATABLE TEST CASES]]</span>''
 
=<span style="font-size: 16px">'''Experiences'''</span>=
 
=<span style="font-size: 16px">'''Experiences'''</span>=
 
<span style="font-size: 16px">If you have used this pattern, please add your name and a brief story of how you used this pattern: your context, what you did, and how well it worked - or how it didn't work!</span><br /> <span style="font-size: 14px">.................................................................................................................[[Main Page]] / Back to [[Design Patterns]] / Back to [[Test Automation Patterns]]</span></div>
 
<span style="font-size: 16px">If you have used this pattern, please add your name and a brief story of how you used this pattern: your context, what you did, and how well it worked - or how it didn't work!</span><br /> <span style="font-size: 14px">.................................................................................................................[[Main Page]] / Back to [[Design Patterns]] / Back to [[Test Automation Patterns]]</span></div>

Revision as of 16:26, 28 June 2018

.................................................................................................................Main Page / Back to Design Patterns / Back to Test Automation Patterns

Pattern summary

The best automation solutions are often found by concentrating on what the test case is trying to check and forgetting how it is executed manually

Category

Design

Context

This pattern is always valid

Description

When tackling some automation problem, it pays to look for unconventional solutions

Implementation

There are quite a few ways to implement this pattern. Here some ideas:

  • For a start KEEP IT SIMPLE and TAKE SMALL STEPS. Once you better understand the problem try to think about it from different viewpoints
  • Can you automate some of the tasks surrounding the test automation? For example, as part of pre-processing for a given set of tests, perhaps some data needs to be set up in a database or file. Write (or ask someone to write for you) a small utility or script to populate the data you need. This can then be called as part of the set-up for that test, and this helps toward UNATTENDED TEST EXECUTION.
  • ASK FOR HELP: ask a tester about different ways to get the same results or ask a developer how the functionality you want to test is implemented
  • SHARE INFORMATION: Explain to testers, developers or other automators your problem, maybe all together you come on a better solution
  • Search in internet forums how other people have solved the same problem
  • Sleep over it: sometimes in the evening a problem hovers like an impregnable wall, but in the morning suddenly the wall has become much lower!

Potential problems

If you don't get a better idea immediately, use what you have: a not so good solution is still much better than no solution at all

Issues addressed by this pattern

COMPLEX ENVIRONMENT
HARD-TO-AUTOMATE
MANUAL MIMICRY
MULTIPLE PLATFORMS
UNAUTOMATABLE TEST CASES

Experiences

If you have used this pattern, please add your name and a brief story of how you used this pattern: your context, what you did, and how well it worked - or how it didn't work!
.................................................................................................................Main Page / Back to Design Patterns / Back to Test Automation Patterns