http://softwaretestingadvice.com/index.php?topic=834.msg834#msg834 - Some of the key features that can be used in the automation are:
Plug-ins
Plug-ins are
used to make recording more acceptable to a specific application, we
use web plug-ins to automate test cases with respect to web
applications. QTP has default plug-ins for ActiveX controls, web
applications and VB objects. Plugins for other objects, such as
Microsoft .NET objects, are also available.
Record and Playback
Initial
development of automated tests with QTP is usually done by
record-and-playback. A user's actions are captured via Microsoft's
Component Object Model (COM). These are recorded as VB script-like
commands into "Actions", which are similar to functions. All
manipulated objects that QTP recognizes are also added to the object
repository. Once recorded one gets editable QTP scripts.
After
clicking on the playback button all these actions will be played back.
During playback, QTP attempts to identify and manipulate the same
objects, again using COM.
Active Screen
QTP
captures the screen of the applicaton and saves along with the script.
The active screen section highlights the objects in the active screen
as the user navigates through the script so the user knows what object
he/she will be performing the action upon. Active screen is also
helpful in creating checkpoints.
Checkpoints
Checkpoints
are an important feature in QTP, used for verification of the tests.
One can check each event made on the automation and can add check point
to check if a particular object, text or a bitmap is present in the
automaton run. Regular expressions can also be used in check points.
Recovery
Recovery
is a concept like exception handling in a programming language, which
can be applied when an unexpected failure occurs. For instance if an
application crash occurs and a message dialog appears, QTP can be
instructed to open the application and continue with the rest of the
test cases from there.
Output Value
This
feature is used to output values to the data table when a particular
event is made. For instance if one wants to store the default value of
the text box before the start of the test one can use this and store in
a data table when an event is made on it.
Data Table
The
data table is a Microsoft Excel workbook that can be easily accessed
from within QTP. It contains one worksheet for each Action, including
the hidden global action at the top of the action tree (see Keyword
View). It is primarily used to implement keyword-driven testing.There
are two types of Data Tables available in QTP. One is Global Data Sheet
and Local Data Sheet.
Virtual Objects
As
this tool is designed to be used across applications, some objects may
not be recognized properly. So it is designed with a virtual object
concept which can be used to overcome this drawback. If an object is
not recorded one can define that object as a personal virtual object
and build a virtual object repository. The next time the object is
recorded it will be recognized as a virtual object from your repository
and playback will be possible.
Transactions
This
feature can be used to calculate the time required to run a particular
test or particular steps in the tests. Transactions are most often used
in automated software performance testing, so they are infrequently
used in QTP.
Results
QTP
generates the result file for the test cases at the end of test in the
form of XML tree. It gives the complete detail of PASS and FAILS
counts, along with the tractability of failures with appropriate
messages. It is easy to verify the results from these files.
User Interface
QuickTest
provides two main views of a script: Keyword View and Expert View. They
are selected from tabs at the bottom of the QTP window.
Keyword View
Keyword
View is QTP's default test procedure interface. It displays a test
procedure as a tree of Actions and functions. The tree contains columns
listing the Action or function name, any parameters, and comments. This
mode is most useful for the beginners in operating with the tool. This
view allows the user to select the objects either from the application
or from the Object Repository and the user can select the methods to be
performed on those objects. The script is automatically generated. User
can also set check points from keyword view.
Expert View
In
Expert View, QTP allows display and editing of the a test's source
code. All test actions can be edited here except for the root Global
action. Expert View acts as an IDE for the test. It includes most
standard IDE features, such as breakpoints.
The QuickTest
Professional scripting language is built on top of VB script. As such,
all the features of VB script can be used in QTP. VB scripts have very
versatile features like basic programming function calls, variable, API
calls, message boxes, etc. When combined with the record and playback
of QTP, many tasks can be automated.
This view is most suitable
for the advanced users in QTP and the user can write the customized
user defined functions and test them.
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