My Experience with Open Source Testing Tools - 2

Maturity has different meanings when it is related to software testing tool.

First criteria is reliability of the tool.This means tool should generate the results in most consistent and acurate manner.Here Consistency means if tool pass(or fail) a test then it should always pass(or fail) that test irrespective of number of iterations of test suite execution.

Second criteria is the number of features this tool helps in for testing.Again these features vary depending on the type of testing we are talking about.For ex,if we are talking about performance testing,the number of protocols this particular tool is supporting as performance testing mainly deals with triggering transactions between different components having their own protocols.If the underlying testing is functional web testing then features could be like number of browsers(IE,Firefox,Opera etc) it is supporting as well number of platforms(windows,linux,mac etc) tool is supporting.

Third Criteria is activity under that tool.This mainly tells the number of users using that tool as well as the number of people who are working for that tool to fix the bugs and to enhance the features of that tool.This criteria is very much important in selecting a tool.One can very easily get details pertaining to activy of that tool in tool's website.

Open source Community is anouncing that their products are having high quality than the equivalent commercial software.Opponents of open source arguing just the opposite saying that open source software is highly inconsistent and unreliable.Anyway i dont want to extend this with my own arguments.I am trying to tell the advantages one can unleash by using open source testing tool to a company as well as to an individual.

whenever i evaluate an open source tool, i will follow above criteria.I've selected selenium by following the same criteria.

The main reason for people using the open source tools is not whether their need is served, since in most cases you will find a tool to do the job, but whether the tool is mature enough to invest in. Test automation is a major undertaking that has high costs in terms of upskilling test team and creating test scripts, etc., and people need to know that the tool is a good investment, whether or not there is a license fee to pay. People need to look about if the tool is going to be around in five years' time, what levels of support are available, how good is the feature innovation, bug fixing, release schedules, and so on.

Right or Left..It Doesn't Matter

When i was about to write this blog i was reminded of one old popular Telugu song from a movie called "Devadasu".The song starts like this:"Kudi edamite porapatu ledoi..odi poledoi".The exact translation of this song in English is "Even right become left there is nothing wrong in that..it doesn't result in defeat".This exactly applies to our driving licensing system in India.

Today me and my wife went to RTO office to attend for her driving test for two wheeler.Two wheeler is Honda Activa which is a gear less vehicle.She applied for driving licence through an agent which is a very normal practise in India.So first we went to Agent's office which is in near vicinity of the RTO Office.She filled mandatory forms and went to nearby RTO Office to get a stamp from RTO Office.

In the meantime all aspirants for driving licence (two wheeler and four wheeler) asked to wait at some place on nearby road.These aspirants resembles F1 drivers such as Hakkinen, Raikkonen,Alonso etc waiting for their turn to prove their abilities. Nobody knew the place of proving their driving prowess Time was 9:30 am.We waited there till 11:30 am at the same place.Some aspirants started their vehicles for the final practise and at the same time to keep the confidence.Even my wife went for a small practise round.

Then the real story begin.At around 11:40 all vehicles started moving in one direction like a big procession.So we become the part of that procession.We reached that battle ground and again we were waiting there.After a while an SUV stopped before us and one guy wearing a coat come out of that vehicle.After some time i found that this guy is the person who administer the process and who is going to issue or deny driving licence.

All the place,agents are busy calling people by their names by carrying papers.Incidentally first turn came to my wife.She is the first one to prove her driving skills today.This administrative person,me and my wife are standing on left side of the road under a tree.Then this guy asked her to drive on a stretch which could be 100m long and take a U turn and return to the same place.

She started vehicle and move forward.I can't say that it was a nail-bitting episode for me but i was little bit excited as well as worried as that road is a public road unlike a special ground where usually these kinds of drives will happen.I was watching her and this guy to analyse how this guy is analysing her driving skills.But he didn't watch her but after some time he looked at her across the stretch.Till that time she drove on the left side and suddenly i didn't know what provoked her..she moved abruptly to right side of the road and from right side to left side she took a U trun Which is an absolute blunder in driving test.

She was about to reach the starting point on left side and again something provoked her,switch on indicator to come to right side where this guy stood and stopped the vehicle in front of him.Immediately he pointed her mistakes of taking U turn in wrong direction and parking the vehicle on the wrong side of the road.Actually she interpreted his instruction regarding reaching the starting point in other way.

In the meantime,some funny things happened.This guy asked one more lady to go for a drive by giving the same instruction.This lady move forward and one more guy on vespa followed her for his test.She didn't stop at the end of the road and she went into parallel road and enter into this road from behind.The guy who followed her on vespa also motivated by her and he also did the same thing by entered the start place from behind.Here everybody including the main guy anxiously waiting for their turn, almost shocked by their entry from backside of the street :-).

Our agent asked us to go and wait at the other side of the road.Finally agent came and asked her to appear again for driving test after 10 days.I thought it strange.In India,in general people used to get all kinds of driving licences including licences for heavyweight vehicles such as lorry,earchmover and bulldozer without appearing for test.In addition we approached through an agent by paying money and part of that money will go as a bribe to respective govt authority. When we are supposed to leave,agent asked us to call in the afternoon.Then i concluded that may be by taking some extra money he will provide license.I assumed that part of this extra money will again go to concerned govt authority.Finally my guess was right and she got the licence irrespective of direction of U turn or side of vehicle to be parked.Then i reminded of old Telugu song.."Kudi edamite porapatu ledoi..odi poledoi" :-)
.