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.

Contents

1 What is Visual Regression Testing
2 The Function Of The Visual Regression Testing
3 Features Offered By The Cloud-Based Ai-Powered Test Orchestration And Execution Platform – Lambdatest For Robust Visual Regression Testing Are As Follows:
4 Best Practices for Visual Regression Testing on Cloud
5 Conclusion

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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Some Of The Most Popular Programming Languages

Computers are the future, and if you are thinking about training in this area, there are many different languages that you can learn. These programming languages are used for various things, and choosing to specialize in one of these fields or more can see you acquiring a skill that is highly sought after if you can do the job well. Below are some of the most common programming languages and what they are used for, to give you an insight, and help you to decide which one to learn. Front End Developers If you choose a career path in front end development, then you will be working on the user side of applications, programs, and websites. A front-end developer will code anything that the end-user can see, such as this web page. It is an essential job to help enhance the user experience. When it comes to this type of work, there are 3 main languages that people use, which are; HTML - Hypertext Markup Language CSS - Cascading Style Sheets JS - JavaScript You may find that a website, application, or other types of software may use one or all three of these languages, and although people may specialize in one, they will most likely know all three. Each one has its benefits, which is why they are often used in conjunction with each other. When they are used cleverly, it is possible to use them to help to enhance the end-user experience. Professional companies will specialize in all three of these languages to help them provide their customers with the expertise required and deliver fantastic software or a website. Back End Developers As you may expect, a back end developer will take care of everything that goes on in the background, unseen by the end-user, but without their efforts, the software or website would be unable to perform. When it comes to back end development there are three main languages commonly used, which are; Ruby Python Java All three of these languages are used throughout the world, including the top and most successful companies and websites. Ruby runs on the Ruby on Rails framework, and it is a simple language to learn and comprehend. Java is also very popular, and not to be confused with JavaScript, it has been around for over 20 years, is used in 90% of the Fortune 500 companies, and is extremely versatile. Python is also a general-use language for programming, and because it is so versatile, it can be used with just about anything. Aside from these 3 languages, PHP is also worth mentioning. PHP is a scripting language that’s used for web development. You can learn this language together with the other programming languages as it’s not as complicated as you think. If you’re a business owner looking for the top PHP programmers for hire, contact a reliable agency and they’ll be able to help you. If you have the mindset and ability, it is possible to learn all these programming languages, although you may be best specializing in one first before learning more. If you are looking for a career that has almost limitless prospects and you want freedom in your life, becoming a specialist is an excellent choice to make. When you have the skills and expertise, the world is your oyster, and you will be able to work almost anywhere that takes your fancy. One potential benefit is that you can teach yourself or select an online course, so if you already work, you can do it in conjunction with your job. Read Also: How to Become a Hacker: X Steps to Follow 7 Advantages of Using Website Design Templates About FuseLab Creative

Dos and Don’ts of Marketing for Technology Companies

Marketing is essential to the success of any business – and that includes technology companies. According to The CMO Survey, tech companies spend 15% of their total budget on marketing. Second, to Consumer Packaged Goods industry, the tech sector has one of the highest budget allocations for marketing. In fact, tech giant Samsung is considered the second largest advertising spender worldwide with a total $9.2 billion advertising spending. This underlines the importance of marketing in the technology industry. When you don’t run an effective marketing campaign, you’re doomed to fail -- no matter how impressive your solution is. Unfortunately, a lot of tech companies, especially startups, still fail to recognize this fact. While some technology companies have marketing plans, many of these are ineffective. We’ve seen a lot of tech companies come and go. And many of those companies that failed didn’t give marketing the right attention it deserves. To these companies, hindsight is an amazing but useless thing! The good news is that you don’t have to commit the same missteps of these failing (or failed) tech companies. They are avoidable – and you can learn HOW to avoid them. Here are some do’s and don’ts of running an effective marketing for a technology company. DO: Be bold and interesting When a tech company grows, their marketing strategies tend to stagnate and settle with the ‘usual campaigns’ that may have worked for them in the past. But the problem is that the competition is ever evolving. As such, your marketing strategies need to stay bold, interesting and exciting too. Always remember that the moment you settle with formulaic marketing techniques, you become less competitive. Don’t wait to become irrelevant. Study your market, know where it’s headed and be ahead of the pack. DON’T: Set up and just wait for visitors So you’ve built a website, social media networks and added some content. But it shouldn’t end there. Don’t expect people to find and visit your page. You have to invest in promoting and marketing your online presence. Great content, social media presence and effective SEO for technology companies are vital to connecting with your customers. DO: Focus on your company instead of customers Perhaps the cliché, “the customer is always right” also means “the customer is king!” Unfortunately, not all tech companies realize this. Marketing campaigns of many tech companies focus so much on their products or services, but never really about their customers. But the fact is that customers only care about their problems, needs, and goals. They’d only want to know if you offer a solution to their problem. To engage their interest, talk about how you can help them and in the language they understand. Effective marketing talks about how you can solve a problem, and once you get their interest, you can then brag about your product’s features. DON’T: Spend too much or too little For your marketing campaign to be effective, it needs to be funded adequately. According to U.S. Small Business Administration, a company should devote at least 7 to 8 percent of your gross revenues for marketing and advertising. This underlines the importance of marketing. You will spend on various marketing channels, and maintain a good marketing and sales team. Scrimping on your marketing budget can do more harm than good to your tech company. A 2016 Gartner Survey shows that budget allocations for marketing continue to increase, climbing to 12% of the company budget. The tech industry is a very competitive one and there is a need to keep abreast with competition. However, this doesn’t mean you can spend all of your revenue on your marketing. You don’t want to pour in your budget on failing or badly-managed marketing techniques. Evaluate each of the marketing strategies you employ and see which one gives you the most ROI. 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Keep your web presence active and relevant - it’s an important part of your branding. DO: Focus your marketing efforts In an effort to get a wide audience, some tech companies create an unclear persona and a scattered, complicated marketing campaign. As a result, they end up wasting their budget. While you want to reach as much audience as possible, launching a marketing campaign without proper targeting can both costly and wasteful. You need a targeted and focused marketing. Know your product or service and engage a specific market segment, particularly those with the highest chances of conversion. Do your research and discover where your target audience is. Take note that not everyone is a potential customer – focus on channels that bring you the best results. For example, if you are marketing a tech solution for gamers, you will have the best returns if you place your ads on a gamers’ forum instead of a woodworkers’ forum. DO: Build a strong organic relationship Nowadays, it’s very easy to buy traffic or page visits from dodgy merchants. But the problem is that these numbers mean nothing to your business. Sadly, this remains one of the most common mistakes of many tech companies. In an attempt to boost their online presence in an instant, some companies resort to devious digital marketing schemes that promise to increase their web presence overnight. This is a major and wasteful misstep you should never do. Your marketing campaign should focus on building your product. Letting people know what solutions you offer, engaging your audience and building strong organic relationships. Invest your time and efforts into marketing strategies with good returns – and you’re on the right track. Read More: Social Media Marketing role in Technology. Importance of Flexibility with Business Technology. Securing Mobile App Development with Blockchain Technology.

7 Advantages of Using Website Design Templates

In recent years, agencies and designers are turning to website design templates to help them in their work. These include platforms like- WordPress Themes HTML Themes and Templates Joomla Themes Although they could need some customization to satisfy your desires, website style templates provide numerous advantages. Here are some benefits of using web design templates. 1. Affordability- One of the biggest advantages of using websites templates is their affordability. When it comes to designing a custom PSD, brands, agencies, and designers always look at higher costs. This is why design templates are becoming so attractive. At a price of less than $100 USD, you can get attractive, easy to use and highly engaging website design templates. The best part about such templates is that they are very easy to manage. You do not need to constantly pay your agency when it comes to maintenance fees. 2. Time Efficient and Low Maintenance- The biggest reason why website design templates are becoming so popular is the time factor. I remember a time, not so long ago when websites would take two to three months to be made. There would be constant back and forth between the client and the agency. Ultimately, the project would overshoot the cost estimate and end up being expensive. However, website design templates help in saving a lot of time. This means that websites are now made within one to two weeks, no matter how complicated or exhaustive they are. From a design and development perspective, this means more projects can be churned out in a month. From a client perspective, it means that you do not need to keep waiting for three months for your website. In case you have any issues along with your designmodo free website templates, you will be able to get help from the platform from which you bought the template. Since it is not a complicated issue, you will be able to rectify the same through a simple phone call or a Skype call. 3. Instant Results How often have we experienced the pain of waiting for our agency to upload new content? This becomes particularly more depressing when there is an e-commerce website. However, since website design templates are easy to use and not complicated at all, you would not require the technical expertise of your agency. You can make changes to content, remove content, add a product, as well as publish a new blog, all by yourself. This means that changes can be made as and when required. This frees you from dependence on your digital agency. 4. Proper Writing From a digital perspective, it is all about the code! This means that a properly coded website will always perform better than a shabbily done one. Needless to say, the programmers who are coding these website templates are experts at their job. They are far more skilled than your neighborhood friend, who dabbles in programming occasionally. A properly coded website is a sign of professionalism and technical sophistication. The better and cleaner the coding process, the lighter will be the website. You should always bear in mind that website templates are always SEO optimized from a design and development standpoint. 5. Installed SEO Optimizations Website templates generally come with an abundance of built-in functionality, from SEO options to applications program editing skills. That can facilitate to save lots of your time, money, and problem altogether areas of website management. A website, which is not SEO optimized will never be discoverable by search engines like Google. If it is not discovered and indexed, it means that no one can find it in search results. This will lead to a loss of website traffic and solid opportunities for revenue generation. 6. Ability to Add Unlimited Content The best part about platforms like WordPress is the ease of managing Content Management Systems. Almost anyone can publish SEO friendly content on their website with the help of easy tools and software. They guide you in terms of making the content SEO friendly and readability analysis. Limitless Choices-The web is jam-packed with templates. Shoot a question, and you may instantly get thousands of results. With such an abundance of selections, the toughest a part of employing a templet is finding the one that most closely fits your design desires. 7. Reliable Updates When you purchase a website templet, you frequently receive updates and support for the future. Updates to CMS platforms like WordPress will usually cause theme issues. And knowing that you have access to support from the theme developers in such a situation is one of the best advantages of using a website template. Although there are several advantages to using website templates, some shortcomings ought to know about. While considering the template for your website, take care to keep these problems in mind. Read Also: Tips On Building Your Resume For A Website Design Company How To Design An Effective Company Website

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: