The application development industry has undergone significant changes that have massively developed not only the testing practices but also influenced the quality of the outcomes. For instance, the testing process has gained a lot of popularity as it plays a critical role in verifying the stability of the final application. With the help of proper test cases, the developers can also ensure that the application is ready to be released to the production phase. Cross-browser testing is one of the advanced testing practices that helps developers improve their audience base by verifying the stability of applications on multiple configurations. Cross Browser testing can also benefit significantly by introducing automated test cases. Cross-Browser testing also helps the app developers to include additional features for the app execution process.
With this article, we’re going to discuss some of the best resources that can help application developers to improve their knowledge and learn effective cross-browser testing processes. We’ll also discuss the role of various tools and platforms in improving the efficiency of the automated cross-browser test bench.
Understanding Cross-Browser Testing
During the early years of the Internet, end users could access online services through only Internet Explorer. However, with the advancement of technology and the requirements of the customers, various new alternatives have arrived on the market. Internet Explorer has become almost extinct and has been replaced by Microsoft Edge. However, the top players in this segment include Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Safari. Since there are so many options available, application developers must ensure that their web apps function properly on all these browsers. However, it becomes impossible to individually verify the functioning of all the apps on every option. This is where cross-browser testing comes into effect.
With the help of effective cross-browser test cases, the developers can ensure their application remains stable irrespective of the end user’s change in the operating system, browser version, or device hardware. Cross-browser test cases also help the application developers guarantee the application’s stability on old legacy browser versions. This is an essential feature, as various market studies show that 75% of end users do not update their web browsers. So, we can easily say cross browsers testing has a significant role in improving the audience reach and overall test coverage for an app company.
Analyzing the Influence of Automation Testing on Cross-Browser Testing
In cross-browser testing, the developers have to verify the stability of the web app on multiple combinations of various browsers and operating systems. Conducting all of these test cases individually can be a hectic process for an app company. In a worst-case scenario, it can also delay the application’s final release. To avoid such unwanted obstacles, the developers can integrate automation testing into their test bench. This is the process of eliminating human involvement in the application testing process. Instead, the system will use a text file consisting of various parameters and data sets that will allow it to communicate with the application like a normal user. Based on these interactions, the system will generate a detailed test report.
The app developers can later analyze this report to understand whether the application is ready for the open world. It is also possible to make significant changes in the test report to make it suitable according to the application undergoing the development process. Moreover, it is a straightforward process to store, reuse and maintain the automation test files for future App projects. However, test automation comes with a significantly high initial charge. These charges cover all the expenses for integrating various tools, libraries, and plugins that are crucial for the proper implementation of test automation. So, the app companies must have enough resources to justify this investment.
Integrating Tools and Platforms with cross Browser Test Cases
While performing cross-browser testing, the developers also have to verify the influence of the physical parameters of a device on the functioning of a web application. The contemporary practice for executing this process was to maintain a physical test bench consisting of multiple devices. However, this is a costly and hectic process because the developers have to continue updating the test with every new addition in the device market. The easiest replacement for this process is to maintain cloud platforms. These platforms provide access to multiple remote servers that allow the developers to execute the test cases and achieve similar test results. These servers also have access to legacy devices that are impossible to find in the present market. We can improve our knowledge about the present status of cloud-based cross-browser testing by bringing in LambdaTest as our discussion point:
For the general introduction, LambdaTest is a unified intelligent digital experience testing cloud-based platform that enables testers and developers to perform manual and automation testing on their web and mobile applications over more than 3000+ browsers and OS configurations available on the cloud. In addition, LambdaTest also has various innovative features like parallel test execution to improve the efficiency of the test cases by multiple times.
Best Resources to Learn Cross-Browser Testing
In this technologically advanced industry, various resources are currently available to help app developers and testers learn about efficient cross-border test cases. However, to ensure that the modern generation receives the best and most reliable information, we have created a list of the most efficient resources for learning cross-browser testing. They are as follows:
1. LambdaTest Blog
The official website of LambdaTest maintains an interactive blog that helps developers learn various important parameters regarding application development and testing. This guide has various dedicated articles explaining the importance of cross-browser testing and how to execute it efficiently. It also introduces various platforms and tools that can help the developers in this process.
2. MDN Web Docs
This is an excellent option for learning various forms of web development, including cross-browser testing. With the help of MDN web docs, the developers can learn various standards like CSS, HTML, and JavaScript. Moreover, the compatibility section of this resource allows the developers to have a clear idea about various compatibility issues they can face during cross-browser testing and app development as a whole.
3. Selenium HQ
Selenium is a well-known test suite for executing automated testing on web applications. Using this suite, the developers can also run cross-browser test cases on modern web applications. The Selenium HQ provides detailed documentation, including various illustrated sample test cases explaining the execution process for cross-browser testing with its interface.
4. wikiHow
This is a well-known online platform for gathering information regarding almost everything in this world. The official website of WikiHow is open source, which means that the developers and testers can access this information without worrying about any charges. It also allows the creation of independent communities to continue updating the information to ensure that it stands up to the expectation of modern standards.
5. Documents of Various Cross-Browser Testing Tools
Various cross-browser testing tools can help developers to run the test cases over the applications efficiently. These tools also have dedicated websites that provide important documentation regarding the proper practices for the testing process. They also have examples to improve the simplicity of the testing process.
6. YouTube Tutorials
This might seem shocking, but YouTube is often regarded as one of the most reliable sources of information. Various verified channels on YouTube provide efficient and informative videos regarding the execution of cross-browser testing. Since all the information is provided in a video format, it improves the understanding process for the new developers and testers. These tutorials also provide packet links to all the required software and library accesses.
7. Online Courses
After a simple search, the developers will realize that various online courses are available with a minimal charge that can help them massively improve their knowledge regarding cross-browser testing. It is essential to check the feedback of a course before opting for it. This is because various low-level online courses are circulating on the Internet.
8. Stack Overflow
This is a popular community-driven quality assessment platform. The question-and-answer segment of this platform will provide vital information to the developers regarding proper cross-browser testing processes. Moreover, the application developers and testers can post their questions and get them answered by various market experts.
9. Web Development Blogs
A simple Google search will return various web development blogs consisting of highly useful information regarding the healthy practices of cross-browser testing. CSS Tricks is one such web development blog that provides vital information in this segment.
10. Online Communities and Forums
There are various online forums and communities consisting of tech enthusiasts who are always ready to help new developers. So, while working with cross-browser testing, the testers can always refer to this community whenever they are stuck with any feature of this testing process. These communities also consist of members working hard to improve the end-user experience while working with various application development technologies. Various cross-browser testing tools and frameworks have their dedicated communities.
Conclusion
This article mainly focused on some of the best resources to help modern application developers and testers learn about cross-browser testing. We also emphasized the importance of integrating automation testing with cross-browser test cases. This is because market experts believe that automation testing will become one of the most critical parameters for ensuring a company’s status in the competitive segment of the industry.
This also means that the app developers have to continue improving their knowledge about all the recent additions and integrations in the segment of automation testing. In this regard, app companies can take a leading role by conducting various awareness campaigns and seminars to spread knowledge about automation testing. Lastly, app developers need to choose the correct tool that can complement their development practices.