Manual vs. Automatic Testing

Today, the requirements for software are changing rapidly and this leads not only to the flexibility of testing and improvement of its methodology. More and more QA specialists seek to develop their professional skills, which are dictated by technological progress.
The adoption of Agile methods will inevitably become popular, as the transition to automated tests eliminates the human errors that are inevitable in manual testing. However, both types can be complementary and even necessary in the software development process. 

Often repetitive and tedious tests are ideal for automation because they will perform it faster and more efficiently. At most, because they are repeatable, they can be executed whenever changes occur in the code. On the other hand, manual tests involve deeper analysis and a more realistic perspective, so they are usually used to evaluate usability and user experience.

Despite the importance of manual testing in the software development lifecycle, a large number of companies are opting for automation. As business demands faster and smarter solutions and manual tests are time-consuming, automation is just that. If you're not yet thinking about switching to automated testing, here are some benefits that may help you decide:

Accuracy

With the help of automated tests, common errors caused during development are eliminated. Every time an automated test is run, it is run accurately, always performing the same operations that provide a more accurate and reliable result. During the development cycle, tests must be run every time the software is modified and can be run automatically every time a change is made.

Reduction of time and costs

Automated tests require less time to execute, although the initial cost of their implementation is high. However, saving time offsets the initial investment, making it economically more profitable. Speed ​​of execution can also be a major factor that will ultimately affect the cost of the product. Meanwhile, shortening the development cycle and optimizing time to market are also achieved through automated testing.

Reuse

Automated tests can be repeated to check how the software responds. Running the tests several times will reveal errors or non-optimized processes that need to be fixed. Automated testing capabilities can deliver software updates or new versions more frequently.

Productivity improvement

The entire team can benefit from test automation because you don't have to spend valuable time running manual tests all the time. Motivation and involvement in performing other, more complex tasks will make the team much more productive, which will help increase the value of the developed software.

A framework for CI and DevOps

Continuous integration and DevOps tuning require a suite of automated testing for better performance. Quality assurance detects regressions in software development as soon as they appear. A test can be run to ensure robust validation whenever a developer changes the codebase.

Although the transition from manual to automated testing may seem difficult, it is worth the effort. To better understand where to start, consider these key points.

Develop your programming skills

Learning to program can be blocked by fear of the complexities associated with automated testing. But when you're pursuing a career as a QA professional, being able to code is a valuable skill that can help you test software more efficiently. In this case, knowledge of a programming language is one of the main skills that you can successfully apply in automated testing.

Choose useful tools and frameworks

Making this simple but necessary change in your work can save you a lot of time in the long run. With automated testing, you won't need to fix anything manually for days. However, to speed up the process, try choosing and then using a combination of tools and frameworks. Using Selenium WebDriver is a solid foundation for an automated testing approach, and you can add other tools as your product requires.

Start simple and small, but make it big

It is important to start with simple and small test cases when you start a new type of testing. Such test cases are easy to automate, debug, maintain and reuse.

Improve basic knowledge

Building automated tests, at first glance, may seem like a difficult task and for this, you will probably need to acquire additional knowledge and new skills. Of course, becoming a skilled automation engineer requires patience, time, and constant learning. Fortunately, there are many resources you can take advantage of. This can be anything from effective communication with those who are already automating to discussion forums and blogs.

Undoubtedly, software in the context of testing is not a small task, and not everything can be automated. But in any case, it's better to perform automated testing at all levels - with more effort at the lowest levels - such as unit tests and API tests, rather than exclusively at the UI level.