Ibm Rational Manual Tester

[Margaret Sieverding]

IBMRational Quality Manager integrated rich manual test. Testers are provided with a rich text editor that can capture textual test steps alongside embedded images. Using this editor, testers can record the test steps that must be executed in order to validate a given function of their application.

IBM Rational Quality Manager allows you to embed test data as a property of a given test step. During test execution, manual tester will populate the Windows clipboard with this text, so that the user can paste the text into the application. This eliminates transcription errors for testers. For validating data, users can copy data from the application to the clipboard. Rational Quality Manager can then compare this to baseline data stored as part of the test, highlighting any discrepancies in the test log.

Rational is now part of IBM, which is leader in the invention, development and manufacture of the industry'smost advanced information technologies, including computer systems, software, storage systems and microelectronics.Rational offers the most complete lifecycle toolset (including testing).

When it comes to Object Oriented development they are the acknowledged leaders with most of the leading OO experts workingfor them. Some of their products are worldwide leaders e.g. Rational Rose, Clearcase, RequistePro, etc.

Rational Functional Tester - An advanced, automated functional and regression testing tool for testers andGUI developers who need superior control for testing Java, Microsoft Visual Studio .NET, and Web-based applications.

Rational Manual Tester - A manual test authoring and execution tool for testers and business analysts who wantto improve the speed, breadth, and reliability of their manual testing efforts.Promotes test step reuse to reduce the impact of software change on manual test maintenance activities.

Rational Performance Tester - IBM Rational Performance Tester is a load and performance testing solutionfor teams concerned about the scalability of their Web-based applications. Combining ease of use with deep analysis capabilities, Rational Performance Tester simplifies test creation, load generation, and data collection to help ensure that applications can scale to thousands of concurrent users.

Rational Test RealTime - Cross-platform solution for component testing and runtime analysis. Designed specifically for those who write code for embedded and other types of pervasive computing products.

Rational Quality Manager is a test management tool which stores test cases, records test execution and results, maps testing onto requirements and tracks defects. RQM is a member of the CLM suite and integrates tightly with Rational Team Concert (RTC), Rational DOORS Next Generation (DNG) and other CLM products, so that tests can be traced to requirements stored in RRC and code elements stored in RTC. RQM also integrates with functional test automation tools such as Rational Functional Tester (RFT). Large collections of automated RFT tests can be run from RQM, and the results stored and managed in RQM, which can be effective in lowering the cost and increasing the speed of application development and delivery. Implementing IBM Rational Quality Manager collaboratively with other elements of the CLM suite can boost overall efficiency, reduce errors or defects, improve speed, and also increase employee satisfaction.

Like other test management tools, IBM Rational Quality Manager provides a central repository of test data, which users can access and update in real time. This is a major improvement on keeping test data in spreadsheets or word documents, as it eliminates the risks of the documents being lost, incorrect versions being used and multiple testers running the same tests, therefore improving overall efficiency. In RQM, tests are organised in test plans. RQM test plans identify the requirements to be tested, which then allows users to create the test cases corresponding to the requirements, and the test scripts (whether manual or automated) corresponding to each test case. As tests are executed, the test plan moves closer and closer to completion.

To execute a manual test, RQM presents each step of the test one at a time to the tester. The tester performs the step on the system being tested and enters whether the step passed or failed into RQM. In order to efficiently utilise the test management tool and execute an automated test, RQM invokes an automated test tool, such as RFT, and executes the desired automated script. When the automated test tool has finished executing the script, the result is passed back to RQM and RQM stores the result.

Defects are managed by the designated defect provider application. RQM can be its own defect provider, but the solution is more powerful if the defect provider is RTC. Rational ClearQuest can also be used as the defect provider.

Roles and permissions: different users can be granted different permissions at both the level of the entire RQM application and also at the level of each project. This ensures that only the appropriate people may access and/or modify test data.

The history of software testing dates back to the 1940s and 1950s when programmers used ad-hoc methods to manually check their code for errors. However, the first dedicated software testing team was formed in the late 1950s at IBM. This team, led by computer scientist Gerald M. Weinberg, a pioneer in system testing, was responsible for testing the operating system for the IBM 704 computer, one of the first commercial mainframe computers.

The concept of test automation can be traced back to the early days of computing, but the first practical implementation occurred in the 1970s. One of the earliest examples of test automation is the Automated Test Engineer (ATE) system developed by IBM. The ATE system, designed to automate the testing of mainframe software applications, represented a significant breakthrough and set a precedent for future test automation systems.

Record-and-playback tools were some of the earliest test automation tools to be developed, emerging in the 1980s and 1990s. These tools allowed testers to record interactions with a software application and then replay those interactions as a script. The scripts could be run repeatedly, allowing for the automation of repetitive testing tasks.

One of the earliest record-and-playback tools was QuickTest, originally developed by Mercury Interactive and later acquired by Hewlett-Packard. QuickTest was designed to automate the testing of graphical user interfaces (GUIs), allowing testers to record interactions with a GUI and then replay those interactions as a script. The tool quickly gained popularity among software developers and testers and set the stage for the widespread adoption of test automation.

IBM Rational Robot was another popular record-and-playback tool that emerged in the 1990s. Rational Robot was designed to automate testing for Windows-based applications and allowed testers to create automated test scripts by recording their interactions with a software application.Rational Robot also included several built-in functions for verifying application behavior, such as ascertaining text on the screen or checking for the presence of specific windows.

Record-and-playback tools were relatively simple and required little programming knowledge, making them accessible to testers with limited technical expertise. However, they were limited in handling complex testing scenarios and were often unreliable when software applications underwent significant changes.

Despite these limitations, record-and-playback tools were a significant step forward in the evolution of test automation. They demonstrated the potential for automating repetitive testing tasks and set the stage for the more sophisticated script-based tools that would follow in the 1990s and 2000s.

Script-based tools emerged in the 1990s and 2000s as a more robust alternative to record-and-playback tools. These tools allowed testers to write scripts in a programming language to automate testing tasks, providing greater flexibility and control. Script-based tools increased the complexity of the tests they could run but also raised the barrier to entry for testers.

One of the most popular script-based tools was Selenium, released in 2004. Selenium was designed to automate web-based applications and allowed testers to write scripts in various programming languages, including Java, Python, and Ruby.

Mercury LoadRunner was another popular script-based tool that emerged in the 1990s. LoadRunner was designed to test the performance of software applications by simulating user traffic and measuring system response times. It included several features for load testing, including the ability to simulate thousands of virtual users and generate detailed reports on system performance.

Though Script-based tools provided more flexibility and control over testing scenarios and allowed for more complex testing scenarios, they required a higher technical expertise than record-and-playback tools, necessitating testers with knowledge of programming languages.

TestNG, released in 2004, became one of the most popular framework-based tools. Designed for Java-based applications, it provided a testing framework that included features for test configuration, data parameterization, and test grouping. TestNG also had several features for reporting and analysis, like generating detailed HTML reports and analyzing test results.

Another popular framework-based tool was Robot Framework, which was released in 2008. This generic test automation framework could be used for various software applications, including web, desktop, and mobile applications. Robot Framework provided a library of built-in keywords for interacting with software applications and the ability to create custom keywords and libraries.

Other notable framework-based tools included Cucumber, designed for behavior-driven development (BDD) and provided a testing framework for defining, executing, and reporting on BDD tests. JUnit, which was intended for Java-based applications and provided a testing framework for unit testing, integration testing, and system testing.

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