I remember being first introduced Selenium back in 2010 with the release of Selenium version 2. And like many people I’m sure, the ability to control a web browser with code written in a NotePad document was a game-changer.

Although the features in Selenium 2 were not drastically different from what is in Selenium 3 for example. There were many bugs which hampered the effort of introducing automation. And with the release of later versions (and with Selenium 4 on the horizon). Even though many have now been fixed, there are some very common pitfalls that if you’re not aware of. Can have you pulling your hair out, cause confusion and frustration trying to determine what is going on.

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If you’re following me on Twitter or subscribe to my weekly newsletter. You’d have seen that I recently finished reading a book titled Moon Walking with Einstein by Joshua Foer.

It chronicles the journey of Joshua Foer, an American citizen with a self-described average memory. Deciding one day to stretch his limits and join the ranks of the country’s top mental athletes. He takes on the task of competing in the USA memory championship. An event which requires participants to complete many challenges such as remembering vast amounts of digits, arrays of information. And memorizing a complete deck of 52 cards to name a few.

Something that Joshua could do in 1 minute and 40 seconds.

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The crowded automated tool market is full of tools advertising attractive features and unique technological advances. Deciding on which one to use is rarely a straightforward exercise to complete.

In this post, I will share my tips that will help you look beyond the marketing claims of tool firms. Enable you to evaluate each one based on its abilities. And come to a decision that allows you to reach the intended goal of test automation.

Results.

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Making time outside our intensive work schedules to dive into the things we find interesting can be tough. With family life and all the commitments, we need to do every day. Seeking out and being involved in something that is bigger than ourselves is often one of the last things that seem possible.

But if you are just starting out in your software testing journey. Or a seasoned veteran. Being involved in the software testing community is one of the best things that you can do for your current, or future career.

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If you have decided to take the step of learning a programming language for test automation. First, let me congratulate you! Learning something new like programming is never easy. But the first time you see that ‘Hello world!’ text appear on the screen. It ignites an addiction that is hard to extinguish.

Second, which programming language are you going to learn? There are a lot after all (just look at the list here). And since not all of them are used in test automation or have many jobs that utilise them. Deciding on the right language to invest your time and effort is crucial for maximizing your future gains.

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You may have contemplated the following question when starting out your career in software testing.

Is it better to be a specialist or a generalist?

When I first started. I wanted to know as much about everything as I could.

Never content with only learning about what I needed to know to do my job. The entire stack of subjects that fed into the software testing craft fascinated me.

I would consume books, blog posts and take courses from everything from software development, mental models and various domain-specific subjects consistently. Not only to get a better idea of the field I was in.

But just because it was interesting to me.

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Whether you are a sole tester on a software project, part of a larger team. Or even a test manager or lead. We all have the ability to influence and connect with others, not only with through our voice or traditional written methods like emails. But also through listening to the thoughts of others and digesting their messages as well.

Testers normally gather a lot of information during the course of our day. Information and detail that, of course, is relevant to us and those that we are directly involved with. But a more senior person who only needs information to enable them to make a decision to fill their own objective. Probably doesn’t need to know about all the tiny details that we have collected.

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As I got more into running and had these wishes to run desert trails, mountain passes and winding country trails. I kept seeing a particular word crop up time and time again, which was used to rank the possibility of being able to run on a course.

The gruelling Badwater 135, for example, would receive a low runability score. Not because the terrain alone is tough. But because the race starts in the depths of the Death Valley basin, 85 meters below sea level. The race sees runners tackle blistering desert heat, multiple mountain passes. And elevations that take them to Mt Whitney at 2530m.

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Introducing automation to existing test process allows you to take advantage of what systems do best. The consistent, repetitive action that leads to lower test execution times and faster insights.

But with a high percentage of test automation projects failing due to a myriad of reasons from a lack of understanding of what automation is. And what to automate in a set of tests (hint: it’s not everything). Many people are not starting in the best place to allow future success for their efforts.

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When collecting information on a topic, gathering views, or simply seeking out opinions from your peers and colleagues that challenge your beliefs and bias. If the data you are seeing only reflects your own viewpoint, which is repeated time after time without opposing concepts allowed to breakthrough. You may find yourself in an echo chamber.

The echo chamber has been used widely to describe social media and other interactive platforms online. In which users are often guilty of creating or only sharing content that perpetuates their own viewpoints and that data is consumed by like-minded individuals.

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