WebDriver Future
Eddie
I thought you saw Selenium and WebDriver as competitors (customer
browser control vs. JavaScript injection), but you appear to have
decided they can be complementary, which is great. My primary concern
with adopting WebDriver was uncertainty over survivability. As I
mentioned in an earlier post, I considered using JWebUnit a while
back, which is a similar idea to yours with both HTMLUnit and "real"
browser support. Unfortunately, the author has admitted that the
project is effectively dead. With your integration with Selenium and
Selenium's integration with Google, it seems fairly certain that
WebDriver (in some form or another) will live on. Now my primary
concern with adopting WebDriver is what happens between now and
Selenium 2.0.
- Will the WebDriver interface be abandoned (leaving me marooned) with
the development of Selenium 2.0?
- Will development and forum support for WebDriver stop for
development of Selenium 2.0?
I appreciate any help with deciding how to move forward.
As a side question (if you have the time/inclination to answer), I'm
curious about the relationship between Google, OpenQA (Selenium), and
WebDriver. How does Google support Selenium? Did/Will it buy OpenQA/
hire all Selenium developers? Do you now work for Google or OpenQA?
Simon Stewart
My answers are inline.
On Mon, Mar 24, 2008 at 2:55 PM, Eddie <eddiesm...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Congratulations on the adoption of WebDriver by Selenium.
Many thanks!
> - Will the WebDriver interface be abandoned (leaving me marooned) with
> the development of Selenium 2.0?
Absolutely not. One of the things that the Selenium developers found
attractive about WebDriver was its API. I'm keen to keep it clean and
as free of clutter as possible. What will happen is (certainly) a
package renaming to place it under "org.openqa.selenium", additional
methods and (possibly) some renaming of existing methods.
> - Will development and forum support for WebDriver stop for
> development of Selenium 2.0?
We're still figuring out the best way to integrate the webdriver
project into the selenium infrastructure, and those conversations will
be happening on the selenium developer forum. For now, webdriver
development is continuing on Google Code and support on this list. As
soon as there's news, I'll be sending an email to this list too.
> I appreciate any help with deciding how to move forward.
I hope that's been helpful. If you've got any other questions, please
feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer.
> As a side question (if you have the time/inclination to answer), I'm
> curious about the relationship between Google, OpenQA (Selenium), and
> WebDriver. How does Google support Selenium?
The best answer to this question is to watch Mark Striebeck's
presentation at the recent Selenium Open Evening. It's the first of
the lightning talks at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDb8yOM3Vpw
I should also point out that ThoughtWorks has had (and continues to
have) a major part to play in both projects as well; take a look at
the work they've done on Selenium Grid, for example.
Regards,
Simon
Simon Stewart
It should go without saying, but just in case: many other individuals
and companies that have contributed to Selenium in particular, but
also to WebDriver. Without their help, neither project would be as
capable or as advanced as they are now. I'd also like to say that the
feedback and involvement of the the people who've taken the time to
try webdriver out is one of the major reasons that I'm as enthusiastic
about working on the project as I am. So, thank you :)
Regards,
Simon
Mirko Nasato
I'll certainly watch the videos, but as a starter I'm happy to have found this summary by Matt Raible
http://raibledesigns.com/rd/entry/last_night_s_selenium_users
Kind regards
Mirko