Product description

Without tool support, GUI tests have to be performed by a tester who manually executes sets of predefined actions and visually verifies the reaction of the application. This procedure can be automated by a GUI testtool simulating the user actions in the form of keyboard and mouse events.

To verify the reactions of the application, QF-Test processes and evaluates events and their side-effects, for example a new window being opened as the result of a button click. It also validates that the values presented on screen (the contents of a table, for example) are correct. In doing so, it adapts to the inevitable changes of the application during the development cycle, like when a button that changes position or the layout of a table is changed.

For the following reasons QF-Test is exceptionally well suited for the task of automating GUI tests for Java and Web applications:

QF-Test is a Java program itself

Being written in Java itself, QF-Test has the unique ability to communicate with the application directly at the Java level instead of through interfaces provided by the operating system. Cross-platform testing is just one of the benefits of this technique. QF-Test has direct access to information internal to the application which enables it to provide special support for the complex components like tables and trees and also to cope with a very high degree of change. To ensure that the individual elements of the GUI can be reliably identified, the recognition algorithm takes into account many different component attributes. By setting names that uniquely identify components, application developers can assist in making component recognition work even after drastic changes to the GUI.

QF-Test requires Java version 1.4 or higher for itself and Java version 1.3 or higher for the system under test.

QF-Test is easy to use

	Tree structure of a test-suite (original size)

The basic functionality required to quickly build simple tests is easily accessible through QF-Test's natural user interface. With a single click the tester can start the recorder. Subsequent keyboard and mouse actions and the reactions from the application are then captured as tests. These tests can be replayed any number of times without further intervention from the tester.

The recorded GUI elements, user actions and associated data are automatically integrated into a tree structure. This tree, which reflects the hierarchical structure of the application's GUI, is presented in QF-Test's user interface, giving the tester ready access to every bit of information recorded.

The control structures needed to build tests are also integrated into this same tree structure, so the tester will only need to learn to use one GUI which provides a concise overview.

In editing the tree structure QF-Test's user interface assists the user with advanced features like a flexible search/replace mechanism and multiple undo levels which are limited only by available memory.

QF-Test comes with extensive documentation in HTML and PDF. The tutorial helps in getting started, the user manual describes how to work with QF-Test's user interface and the basic operations that can be performed. The reference manual lists all elements and configurable options in detail and also serves as context sensitive help. For developers and other technically interested users, the technical reference has information about the inner workings of QF-Test.

All documentation and the user interface of QF-Test is available in English and German.

Comprehensive functionality

To create reliable and repeatable tests, the tester may require a lot more than just capture and replay. QF-Test provides the following advanced control structures which are all accessible directly through its user interface, so using them doesn't require learning any new syntax:

	Variables, packages, procedures, parameters
	Conditional statements
	Error/exception handling
	Loops
	Start arbitrary processes

Many more features are listed on the technical details page.

Standards-compliance

Open save file format: XML
Test-suites as well as run-logs are stored as XML files, i.e. as plain text in a well-defined syntax. Since XML has become a widely supported industry standard, this opens the way for integration of QF-Test into existing testing environments.

Text-processing using regular expressions
For search/replace operations and for verification of the data displayed by the application's GUI, QF-Test optionally uses regular expressions. The current implementation is based on the GNU regexp package.

Scripting with Jython and Groovy
For the advanced user that needs even more control over the application, QF-Test offers scripting by use of two standard languages - Jython and Groovy. Jython is a Java implementation of the Python language. Groovy is a more recent language with a Java-like syntax. Scripting extends the testers reach into the interior of the application beyond what is readily available through its GUI.