Learning Selenium IDE can be time-consuming and complex for beginners. It’s difficult to understand the basic functionality of Selenium IDE without a proper guide. This is why we have put up a comprehensive blog post on “What is Selenium IDE: Learn The Basics”.
You might feel lost and frustrated with the complexity of learning Selenium IDE, which could delay your progress in becoming a professional tester, and even put your job at risk.
Fortunately, with our “What is Selenium IDE: Learn The Basics,” blog post, you can quickly learn the fundamentals of Selenium IDE and begin creating automated test scripts like a pro. This comprehensive guide simplifies everything, breaking down all the complex concepts into bite-sized pieces that are easy to understand.
Start mastering Selenium IDE today with our beginner-friendly guide!
What is Selenium IDE?
A potent tool for automating web browsers is Selenium IDE. Essentially, users can record, edit, and debug tests using this integrated development environment (IDE) without having any programming experience.
For testing online applications, Selenium IDE, which is also a browser extension that can be applied to Chrome or Firefox, offers a simple and easy to use user interface.
We will go through the fundamentals of Selenium IDE and how you can use it to automate web testing. We firmly believe that mastering the principles of Selenium IDE will help you hone your testing abilities and streamline your workflow, regardless of your level of development expertise or testing experience.
So, what is Selenium IDE: want to learn the basics? Let’s get started and learn some Selenium IDE fundamentals. Shall we?
What is Selenium IDE known for?
Selenium IDE is well known for the following:
1. Resilient Tests:
One of the amazing things that we know Selenium IDE for is resilience in its functions. Selenium records locators for every element it interacts with and consequently, if one fails, it automatically tries the others until it records a success.
2. Control Flow:
The Selenium IDE is built with the if, while, loop, and times structures, all of which extensively control the flow structure.
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Reuse of Test Case:
Here is an amazing feature and functionality of the Selenium IDE; the run command. Specifically, it allows you to reuse a test case from another. In other words, it permits you to use logics in different places.
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Plugins:
Plugins are definitely another amazing feature that the Selenium IDE is popular for. By using plugins, you can extend Selenium IDE to accommodate more enhancing features.
Facts About the Latest Selenium IDE Version
The following are the different new features in the latest version of Selenium IDE:
1. Conditionals
For the Conditionals, New Selenium IDE includes:
- if
- else if
- else
2. Loops
New Selenium IDE comes with the following;
- times
- while
- repeat if
- for each
3. JavaScript
New Selenium IDE allows testers to utilise JavaScript. This means testers have the luxury of using commands to execute JavaScript codes.
4. More Browser Support
Furthermore, more browsers are supported by the new Selenium IDE than in previous iterations. The most recent version of Selenium IDE now supports both Chrome and Firefox browsers, unlike the prior version which only supported the Firefox browser.
5. Stronger location strategy
Strong locating tactics are present in the new Selenium IDE. The most recent Selenium IDE version offers a powerful locating method known as Fallback Locators strategy.
There is Fallback Location Approach in new Selenium IDE
When you deploy this new technique, the Selenium IDE records numerous locators for a single UI element during test recording. Subsequently, if any locator fails during playback, the Selenium IDE will try to identify the needed UI element using alternative locators from the list.
What does this mean? Ultimately, this means the recorded test will only fail when none of the numerous locators Selenium IDE captures for the necessary UI element can find it.
1. Control Flow in the new Selenium IDE
New Selenium IDE comes with commands to implement two types of Control Flows in automation testing:
- Conditionals
- Loops
2. The explicit wait command in new Selenium IDE
Previously, we used to provide wait commands in Selenium IDE before executing an action on elements that took a while to load. Thankfully, the most recent Selenium IDE doesn’t require explicit wait commands to force it to wait for the UI elements on the web pages to fully load. Instead, the New Selenium IDE automatically waits for them to fully load before executing any operations.
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Debug the recorded test
With this New Selenium IDE, you can easily debug your recorded tests. The new IDE version allows you to troubleshoot failing tests and find all the reasons why they are failing. This is really an awesome development.
When the test steps having the breakpoints get executed, the execution stops so you can see the current state of the browser to find why the tests are failing. In short, the new Selenium IDE has debugging commands.
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Store Scripts in JSON format
New Selenium IDE Test allows the storage of scripts in JSON format. As a result, you can easily have your test Scripts stored for simple text inspection, allowing you to easily change things like URL, Locators, etc.
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New Selenium IDE – Plugin Extension Capacity
You can extend the New Selenium IDE with Plugins. This means when you realise that it does not have the tools that you need, you can create your plugin and customise it based on your needs. Additionally, you can use any other Selenium IDE developed plugin with the newer version.
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Parallel Execution and Cross Browser Testing possible
The New Selenium IDE comes with a command-line runner. Therefore, the command line runner makes Parallel Execution and Cross Browser Testing possible.
Key Features That Make Selenium IDE Stand Out
In contrast to other automation solutions on the market, Selenium IDE has a number of characteristics that set it apart. The Selenium IDE’s essential attributes make it the finest option for automation testing.
1. Intuitive User Interface
The user-friendly interface of Selenium IDE is one of its most important benefits. Even non-technical people may rapidly and effectively develop automated tests using the tool’s straightforward and user-friendly interface.
2. Effortless Record and Playback
The capability of Selenium IDE to record and replay tests is another feature that sets it unique. With this functionality, testers can capture their web application interactions, preserve them as test cases, and play them back at any time. This ensures test accuracy while saving time and effort.
3. Multi-Language Support
Selenium IDE also supports multiple programming languages such as Java, C#, Python, Ruby, etc., making it a versatile tool for developers with different language preferences.
4. Seamless Third-Party Integration
Moreover, Selenium IDE provides seamless integration with other tools such as Jenkins and Git for continuous integration and version control purposes. Consequently, this makes it an ideal choice for teams working on large-scale projects.
These are just some of the features that make Selenium IDE stand out from other automation tools available today. Its user-friendly interface, recording and playback capability, multi-language support, and integration with other tools make it an essential tool in any tester’s toolkit.
Highlights of Selenium IDE’s Best Features
Here are some highlights of some of the good features of the new Selenium IDE;
- You can Save your Tests In Html, Ruby, Python, C#, Or Any Other Formats.
- Supports User-Extensions
- Supports Automated Title Assertion Across All Pages
- Allows For Simple Customisation
- Does Not Require Knowledge of Programming
- Easy and Straightforward Record and Playback Features
- Easy Field Selection
- Simple and easy to use Debugging Features
- Simple Breakpoint Setup
- Automatically Completes Selenium Commands
- Walking Tests
The New Selenium IDE: Pros and Cons
1. Pros
Software testers and developers frequently use Selenium IDE to automate web application testing. It has several benefits that make it a great option for anyone who wants to speed up their testing procedure and raise the calibre of their applications.
The simplicity of use of Selenium IDE is one of its main advantages. Thanks to its user-friendly interface and straightforward design, even individuals with little or no programming knowledge may pick it up fast.
A number of strong capabilities offered by Selenium IDE also enable testers to design and run test cases quickly and effectively. These include the ability to record and playback user interactions with an application so that automated test scripts can be made using them.
Selenium IDE Tips and Useful Commands
Here are some useful tips for the Selenium IDE:
1. Useful Selenium Commands
One of the most significant advantages of Selenium IDE is the wide range of commands that it offers. These commands allow users to interact with web elements, navigate through pages, and perform various actions on the website under test. Therefore, with Selenium IDE commands, users can create robust and reliable automated tests with minimal effort.
2. Selenium String Manipulation
One of the key features of Selenium IDE is its ability to manipulate strings using various commands. String manipulation commands enable testers to extract or modify specific parts of a string, allowing them to perform complex data-driven tests. For example, these commands can verify that the correct data is being displayed on a web page or to simulate user input by filling out form fields with dynamic content.
Selenium string manipulation is possible with;
- Substring: For instance, to extract “Jonah” from “Hello, my name is.” use:
executeScript|varstr=${text};return(str.substring(15));|name - Replace: To change the name “John” to “Daniel”, use:
executeScript|varstr=${text};return(str.replace("John","Daniel");|newname - Split: Use:
performScript|varstr=$text;return(str.split(" ")[4]);|name - Concat: The concat function can join two strings together:
Execute script as follows: executeScript|varstr1=$text1;varstr2=$text2;return(str1.concat(" ",str2));|str_concat - Trim: Finally, you may also get rid of left- and right-padded spaces by using the trim feature:
executeScript|varstr=${text};return(str.trim());|name
3. Develop Your Xpath Skills on Practise Websites
It is best to deal with a variety of cases to enhance your Xpath and string handling abilities. Otherwise, your skill set could get constrained if you consistently use the same test scenarios.
4. Utilize Xpath Syntax and Capabilities
You can create testing plans that are more effective by using the Xpath syntax and the capabilities.
5. Test in Parallel
You can leverage the functionality of parallel testing to save time and effort by running the same tests simultaneously in several contexts. For instance, running the test sequentially will take time proportionate to the number of environments if you want to test the user interface for several operating systems and browsers.
6. Use CSV to Read Test Data
You can avoid dependent tests and manage your test scenarios more effectively by reading data from external datasets in csv rather than hard-coding it into your test code. However, you must install the Selenium IDE extension by UI.vision in order to read CSV files.
7. Use Plugins to Increase Functionality
The Selenium IDE is a browser extension in and of itself. However, you can improve its capabilities by adding more extensions. Therefore, you can search the marketplace of each browser to discover a plugin that meets your requirements.