Best Practices For Visual Regression Testing On Cloud

19 August 2023

Visual regression testing is the software testing process that is used to test your software application by visually finding any error or malfunctioning in the user experience. Visual regression testing ensures that an application or website maintains its intended look and behavior. It confirms the absence of any unplanned alterations to its visual design or functionality.

This procedure entails comparing a reference version of the application or website and its current version, aiming to identify any visual disparities.

Visual regression testing in a Cloud-based platform is the latest trend in the field of software testing and automation testing. It has various advantages, such as it increases the testing scope, costs less, and it increases testing flexibility.

In this article, you will see the concepts of visual regression testing on the cloud, best practices for it, and many such things.

What is Visual Regression Testing

Visual regression testing evaluates the impact of code changes on the user experience by comparing screenshots before and after execution. It’s also recognized as visual snapshot tests or visual testing, and its primary objective is to uphold visual consistency following updates.

The Function Of The Visual Regression Testing

Visual testing validates the suitability of an application’s user interface in terms of its visual attributes. This quality assurance process aims to confirm the accurate display of content and data on the application’s front end.

In case you’re not acquainted with the concept of Regression testing, its purpose is to ensure that any modifications made to the software do not disrupt any previously functioning elements. In the context of visuals, this testing guarantees that alterations to the software do not lead to style-related problems.

The true capability of visual regression testing can be leveraged with Cloud-based AI-powered test orchestration and execution platforms like LambdaTest. It allows the running of visual testing across a large farm of 3000+ real device and OS combinations. This helps to ensure cross platforms compatibility on the visual appearance and interface of the software applications.

Features Offered By The Cloud-Based Ai-Powered Test Orchestration And Execution Platform – Lambdatest For Robust Visual Regression Testing Are As Follows:

This section discusses the features which are offered by the test orchestration and the execution platform.

Execute Selenium and Cypress tests across a range of programming languages, such as Java, NodeJS, C#, Python, and StoryBook. This empowers the delivery of flawlessly designed applications across almost any browser or device.
Employ Mis-match Ignore feature of SmartUI’s Status Bar so that you can tackle the complexities of visual differentiations. This capability allows testers to crop the status bar out from the screenshots. Leveraging the high-end technique of image processing, it accurately detects and eliminates the status bar. This facilitates the analysis of essential UI components with due focus.
Effortlessly install, set up, and execute the LambdaTest NPM package. This enables the direct implementation of the JS scriptsStorybook via our NPM CLI.
Conduct regression testing, the visual ones for your mobile apps on genuine devices. Assure visual uniformity with precise pixel-to-pixel comparisons against your reference point, encompassing various screen sizes, resolutions, and layouts.

Best Practices for Visual Regression Testing on Cloud

Let us see the practices a tester must follow while performing visual regression testing on a cloud-based platform like LambdaTest.

Following these practices during the test automation will make your software application visually more powerful and efficient.

1. Tool Selection:

Choosing the appropriate tool to perform visual regression testing on the LambdaTest is one of the most important and essential steps in moving ahead of the testing process. Various parameters should be kept in mind during the tool selection for testing automation, such as the software type, compatibility aspects, resolution, etc. LambdaTest integrates with various tools like Selenium, Cypress, Playwright, and others, using which you can perform visual regression testing.

2. Consistent Environment:

Never forget to create a conducive setup that will facilitate cloud-based visual regression testing. The interface provided by using these environments allows you to examine the visual outcomes and input received during the testing process. The testing team has the ability to pause the visual regression testing procedure and make the necessary corrections.

The team conducting the testing should also maintain resource isolation for the environment. It aids in preventing any type of intervention during automation testing, which increases the effectiveness and productivity of cloud-based visual regression testing.

3. Isolation And External Factors:

Remember that the isolated environment should not be affected by any external factors. They include network latency or fluctuations, system updates, or background processes running on the testing machine. These factors may lead to visual error and malfunctioning of the software application. External influences can potentially introduce visual errors and cause malfunctions in the software application.

Ensuring a controlled environment by addressing the factors safeguards the accuracy of the testing results. All the screenshots and visual reports of the testing process will be saved in that specific folder. This will help to perform visual comparisons effectively.

4. Scriptless Test Cases

Visual regression testing on the cloud platform using scriptless test cases is the best approach. Since numerous cloud-based AI tools are available, test automation can be utilized to develop test cases simultaneously. It is because the testing scope of a programmed test case is limited.

But using AI technologies offered by LambdaTest for test case design opens up possibilities for the testing team to consistently cover the testing scope. It will perform visual testing against some test cases, and again, it will recreate the test cases according to the previous result and analysis. This practice will bring the best visual result for your software application.

5. Documentation Of Visual Test Cases

Documentation is a very effective and important practice in any software testing process. In visual regression testing, you need to test and verify the components visually, and here it is important to mark down your observations, bugs, and analysis and work on them accordingly.

For your visual regression tests performed in LambdaTest, you should create clear and succinct test cases and descriptions. You should also include comments or annotations to describe the aim and scope of your baselines and screenshots.

Additionally, you should preserve and maintain your screenshots and baselines using a version control system or a cloud-based service. Sharing and communicating with the client will help you understand their demand and make the best possible result.

6. Updating The Baseline

Updating the baseline is a very crucial step in the visual regression testing process when performed in LambdaTest. It consists of the practice of taking the feedback result and analyzing them. If the result is considerable, you can approve this update in the baseline. And if you think that it is not worth consideration, you can simply reject them. But you need to mention all these in the baseline. It is because this will help you in the future because you can see all your testing logs in the baseline.

Mention the changes that were done intentionally, their reasons, and such things. It will also help all the team members have an overview of the changes that are going on in the software testing process.

6. Optimize Testing Coverage And Scope

Always remember to prioritize the testing scope for each component, specifically when executing visual regression testing in cloud platforms like LambdaTest. The high-priority components must be paid more attention, and they should be executed with high precision.

Use the concept of full-page and component-based screenshots to compare the changes visually by the testing team. Using this practice in visual regression testing will help achieve a better UI experience and enhance the testing results. You can use some advanced features like custom attributes.

These attributes help find the elements separately during visual regression testing. Also, you can use the trigger events and DOM concept. These will help to perform the screenshot comparison effectively.

7. Performing Parallel Testing

Apart from this, you can leverage parallel test execution in performing visual regression testing in LambdaTest. Executing parallel testing is what makes visual regression testing productive and effective, though, along with those other factors.

8. Learn From Failure

It is the final practice that all testers must follow to perform visual regression testing on the cloud and during test automation. Learn from your previous failure. Document the mistakes that you have made previously. Write down the tool feedback and in which specific tool you got some issues performing the testing process. And learn from these highlights.

Make your testing goal and work on your failures. This will bring the best result for your software application. Also, it will help in the overall development of the organization as well as the individual tester. You should follow These best practices while performing visual regression testing on the cloud.

Conclusion

Visual regression testing is mainly used to find any kind of visual malfunctioning and errors in the software. Visual inconsistency is one of the major reasons that lead to decreased number of users of a product.

Some of the best practices that every testing team should follow to perform visual regression testing using the cloud are the selection of appropriate tools, using documentation, using AI-based test cases, etc. Various tools can be used to automate testing and perform visual regression testing on the cloud, such as LambdaTest.

Hope you get an understanding of the best practices for visual regression testing using the cloud and their various aspects after reading this article.

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Arnab

Arnab is a professional blogger, having an enormous interest in writing blogs and other jones of calligraphies. In terms of his professional commitments, He carries out sharing sentient blogs.

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Flying Crane: Purpose, Benefits, And Usage

The AF 200 flying crane's primary aim is to ensure that we can completely revolutionize the wind energy industry and bring forward the most promising piece of technology you can expect from us. We believe that when it comes to technology and high precision, it never has to be in a way that you must compromise on the working of the environment or sustainability factors. This is why we have brought forward the most comprehensive flying crane, and we can say with conviction that this is the best one you can invest in. At AirFlight, our aim is always quality, which is what we have also focused on here. What Are Flying Cranes Typically Used? Flying crane helicopters have significant uses. When it comes to lifting heavy equipment from one place to a remote place, a flying crane is the only reliable to take help. Here we listed the primary purposes where a flying crane is needed. 1. Lifting And Transporting Heavy Materials As we said that lifting heavy materials in a short time from one to another place, Flying cranes are a fantastic option. Lifting heavy construction materials, including concrete, bricks, wood, heavy bake loads, and steel. It allows you to shift the materials for emergency purposes. That is why many construction companies use flying cranes as per their requirement. 2. Replace And Remove Rooftop Units What you can do when you need to lift heavy unit materials from the rooftop of the tower building. You may understand that it is not possible to use any other crane to shift the material from the 80-floor building. Here, aerial crane companies' workers and employees are the most skillful staff who know how to handle these things and how they can shift the materials without making any mistakes. Helicopter cranes are able to spin 360 degrees and they are most efficient in mountainous terrain and congested cities. 3. Forestry Operations Well, for forestry operations, an aerial crane is a suitable tool. To conduct everything in the forest, helicopters can assist in placing tools and picking up the wood to restore them in the nearest factory. However, “heli-logging” is a method of logging that uses an aerial crane to lift cut trees and remove them from the operation area. 4. Utility Construction Project Flying crane technology is able to haul huge pipelines in half time. It is a valuable tool when it comes to lattice structures, placing monopoles, and transporting materials and machinery On the other hand, the flying car is also used to set pipe sections for cell towers in different geo-location. They are the practical choice to install towers in hill stations or hard-to-reach areas. What Is The Unique Feature Of The Af200 Flying Crane? It is common to wonder what is so remarkable about this particular flying crane and why it differs from the other market options. The first and most important reason that makes it one of the best is because of the efficient take-off as well as the landing. Another significant factor about the flying crane is that it is equipped with automated take-off. This ensures that you do not have to put in manual effort for the same. Not only that, another very unique thing about the flying crane is that it is equipped with pre-programmable flying paths. There are no two ways about the fact that one of the most beautiful things about this particular flying crane is that we have tried to decrease manual labor as much as we can. Our primary focus has always been to boost automation and ensure that ultimate efficiency is promised to our clients. AirFlight is one of the better-known brands for the most fantastic flying crane. The Benefits Of Flying Crane Helicopters flying cranes are capable of reaching anywhere and everywhere. They can lift anything from swimming pools, cars, riversides, or construction palaces, etc. A flying crane is the most convenient tool to lift materials from high-rise buildings. After a disaster, for rescue purposes, they can be used to lift materials like rubbish or goods and shift them to remote areas. It is capable of conducting the work in half of the time. With the help of flying cranes, many real estate companies and utility construction companies are able to install or build towers or hotels at hard-to-reach places. Final Words So, these are all about flying cranes. Engineers are made flying crane drawings and designs to ensure the tool can provide the best service. If you think that you want the best flying crane and that too on a budget, you only need to get in touch with us, and we will help you. We can vouch that the AF200 flying crane is the best you will come across! However, if you have any queries, feel free to raise your question in the comments section. Additional: 3 New Age Engineering & Construction Technology How New POS Technology is Advancing Merchant Processing How Cutting Edge Technology is Helping Dubai Improve its Healthcare Services 5 Ways Technology Will Change the Hospitality Industry Post Covid-19 Pandemic

Why I Can’t Download From Google Drive? How To Fix It?

Why I can’t download from Google Drive remains to be one of the most generic questions that bug every user. Google Drive, as you are all aware of is the most popular component of Google that provides users with a great number of functions and features. It is extremely feasible to access, and people won’t have any trouble understanding the ways of its work. Many users around the world prefer this platform over any other to store their folders and files. The problem that we are elucidating on remains that sometimes it is not possible to download files from this Drive. Therefore, we are here to find a solution. What Is Google Drive? Google Drive is basically a storage solution powered by Google that is cloud-based. With the assistance of Google Drive, you will be able to save files online. It can be accessed at any time from devices such as tablets, smartphones, and computers or laptops. There are many advantages to being able to use Google Drive. It is quite feasible to share as well as store your files in a reserved location. This software has built-in integrations associated with the suite of Google’s services and products and even makes use of various collaborative tools. If you are already signed up on Google, be sure to acquire an additional space of 15 GB on the Drive. Why I Can’t Download From Google Drive? Google Drive, as you know, provides us with several benefits to help ease our work over the internet. It also allows us a great deal of storage space that is adequate for standard use. However, at times you might be faced with a few problems occurring around Google Drive. The most general of all these issues is that you can’t download from Google Drive. There are two major reasons that cause this problem of not being able to download from Google Drive. The first cause is that the number of file downloads is generally limited by the software. This is because many people can get access to the file within a span of twenty-four hours. Whenever someone shares the files on Google Drive, this scenario pops up. Hence, these occurrences will deny your file download. There might be another irrelevant issue that will make you realize that you can’t download files from Google Drive. The reason is a poor internet connection. Since the Drive is a cloud-based file storage system, the user must have a proper net connection at all times for getting access to the files. How To Fix Can’t Download From From Google Drive? There are various ways to fix your problem of why can’t I download from Google Drive. Let us have a look at some of those: 1. Restart Your PC No matter which operating system you are working on from Mac or Windows, restarting your computer is always the best initial solution before hopping on to other solutions. 2. Few Other Methods Method 1 Right-click on the file you want to download. From the drop-downRight-click menu, choose the download option. If more than one file is to be downloaded, select the desired number of files. Right-click on any of these files and select the download option from the menu. The files will now be downloaded. Method 2 Choose the folders or files you want to download. On the top right corner, you will find the three-dot icon. Click on it. From the drop-down menu, select the download option. Method 3 Open the file if you wish to download any specific photo or video. Click on the download icon at the top right corner. The file, image, or video will now be downloaded. Method 4 If you do not have any Google accounts and are still using Drive, then on the file list view, you will find the download icon on the right-hand side. Move your mouse towards that part and click on the icon that appears. This will allow your file to be downloaded. 3. Enable Cookies Open Google Drive in Chrome Browser. As you find a tiny lock icon on the left side of the address bar, click on it. From the list, click on cookies. You will find a pop-up window appearing. Here, you need to click on the Blocked Tab option. Find out any link that is related to Google and click on it. Next, tap on the allow button at the bottom. Finally, choose Done. Restart the browser or page, and you will have the downloading options open to you again. 4. Switch Google Accounts A user needs to be signed in with the same account to get access when someone else sends a Google Drive link for downloading files. The file-sharing permission of Google Drive follows two considerations. The user can easily be able to view or download the files if the owner who generates the link has made it accessible for all. However, on the other hand, the owner of the link can even limit the number of users who can get access to the file by mentioning their email ids. During such a case, if you aren’t signed up as a Google user, you might witness errors in the file not opening. This way, you can’t download from Google Drive. Thus, you need to choose and switch for the correct account on Google. Final Thoughts Well, I hope now you have a clearer picture of why you can’t download from Google Drive. However, in this article, every aspect of this issue has been covered. The ways how to overcome this problem have also been explained in various steps. Thus, you just need to read through and understand so that it won’t be any difficult task for you to face such an error. More Resources: How to Free Up Space on Your Mac Top 10 Computer Security Mistakes Best Server Management Tips for Startups

What Is Adaptive Bitrate Streaming And Why It Matters To Viewers

If you are a content creator in this day and age when streaming video content has become a part of our daily lives, then you will definitely understand that the need for a smooth and high-quality viewing experience is paramount. Nowadays, Adaptive Bitrate Streaming (ABR) is becoming popular with content creators. It is a sophisticated technology designed to optimize video playback by dynamically adjusting the video quality based on the viewer’s internet connection and device capabilities. But why does this matter to viewers? This is what we will discuss in this article, so read on. Why is Adaptive Bitrate Streaming Important? You may not be familiar with adaptive bitrate streaming technology. But knowing more about why it’s important can help you to become more successful than you could have thought. So, what is adaptive bitrate streaming, and why is it important to viewers? Also, What is packet loss? Simply put, ABR enhances the overall streaming experience by reducing buffering, maintaining video quality, and making content accessible to a wider audience, regardless of their network conditions. Hence, a big reason why it’s important to viewers is that it allows them to easily continue viewing or gaming online, regardless of the connectivity that their device is experiencing. Anything can happen while someone is viewing something online or playing, from the bandwidth to an internet connection, so when it comes to providing uninterrupted streaming, adaptive bitrate streaming is the technique that can save the day. Uninterrupted experiences are what everyone wants when they’re doing anything related to streaming online, and this is one way to avoid playback fluctuations or issues with buffering. The Tech If you’re not super tech savvy, there is a lot that can be hard to understand about how it works and why it’s important. But if you know the words encoding with multiple bitrates, video segmenting, and HTTP delivery, then you have somewhat of an idea of the process that adaptive bitrate streaming entails. Here is a brief explanation of these terms: Multi-Bitrate Encoding: Videos are encoded at multiple bitrates and resolutions. This creates different versions of the same video, each optimized for different network speeds and device capabilities. Segmentation: The video is divided into small segments, typically a few seconds long. Each segment is encoded at various bitrates. This allows the streaming client to switch between different quality levels seamlessly. Adaptive Streaming Protocols: The segmented video files are delivered with the help of protocols like HTTP Live Streaming (HLS) and Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (DASH). These protocols manage the switching between different bitrate segments based on real-time network conditions. Encoding Ladder: An encoding ladder is a predefined set of bitrates and resolutions used during the encoding process. It ensures that there are multiple quality levels available for the streaming client to choose from, depending on the viewer’s bandwidth. These techniques collectively enable ABR to provide a seamless viewing experience by dynamically adjusting video quality to match the viewer’s current network conditions and device capabilities. Adapting throughout the experience With technology as advanced as what we have in streaming services today, we should all be able to watch shows online without any problem. Gone are the days of pausing our show to let it buffer or watching our favorite streaming platform on low-speed internet and getting terrible visuals. This is all largely thanks to the way that adaptive bitrate streaming allows the content to be streamed which adjusts to the bandwidth, device, and network during any broadcast. This kind of technology allows for a disruption-free experience for viewers who may be experiencing delays or decreases in speed behind the scenes of their game or show. Why it’s so good for users At the end of the day, one of the biggest reasons why adaptive bitrate technology is so helpful for users is that it allows them to get great results, even if there are changes in their connectivity or device functionality. They can be confident that they will get automatic adjustments with their device, thanks to how ABR allows functionality between devices, regardless of how the connection differs. The ability to stream at the best quality according to bandwidth is another reason why it’s appealing. But one of the biggest reasons why this technology is so useful is that it eliminates buffering, which is definitely something that anyone who wants to view or stream content will appreciate. Are There Any Challenges? For the most part, ABR works well for content streaming. However, there could be some challenges with older devices. For instance, their varying capabilities and limitations can impact their latency for live streaming experiences. Here are some key factors that can affect the streaming experience with Adaptive Bitrate Streaming (ABR) in different devices: Screen Resolution And Size Smartphones and Tablets typically have smaller screens and lower resolutions compared to TVs and monitors. ABR can deliver lower bitrate streams to save bandwidth without compromising perceived quality. In the case of smart TVs and Monitors which have larger screens with higher resolutions (e.g., 4K), it require higher bitrate streams to maintain video quality. ABR ensures that these devices receive the best possible quality their network can support. Processing Power High-end devices with powerful processors can handle higher bitrate streams and more complex codecs like H.265 (HEVC) or AV1, providing better video quality. On the other hand, low-end devices or less powerful devices might struggle with high-bitrate streams or advanced codecs, so ABR adjusts to lower bitrates and simpler codecs to ensure smooth playback. Network Connectivity Devices connected to stable Wi-Fi networks can usually handle higher bitrates compared to those on mobile data. It is because the latter might experience fluctuations. ABR dynamically adjusts the stream quality based on the current network conditions. Moreover, when users move between different network environments (e.g., from Wi-Fi to mobile data), ABR adapts in real-time. This helps maintain continuous playback with minimal buffering. Operating Systems And Software Different operating systems (iOS, Android, Windows, etc.) and their versions can affect how well ABR is implemented and supported. Some devices might have better optimization for certain streaming protocols like HLS or DASH. The capabilities of the video player software also play a role. Advanced players can better handle ABR, providing smoother transitions between different bitrates. Additionally, the functionality of adaptive bitrate streaming may be hard for content creators if they’re not familiar with it. In Conclusion From better streaming to versatility in streaming, adaptive bitrate streaming technology has made viewing things online easier than ever. It’s important to any content creator who uses streaming as well so they can provide users with an interruption-free experience. Read Also: How to Stream on YouTube Effectively Google Play Movies: Your Ticket To A World Of Film And Fun Everything About Theflixer: Top 10 Alternatives That You Need To Know About

Best Practices For Visual Regression Testing On Cloud

What is Visual Regression Testing

The Function Of The Visual Regression Testing

Features Offered By The Cloud-Based Ai-Powered Test Orchestration And Execution Platform – Lambdatest For Robust Visual Regression Testing Are As Follows: