Finding the Recipe for Test Automation Challenges with the Automation Cookbook

It happens all the time. You’re working on a problem and run into a roadblock with a small and specific issue. It’s a basic problem and you’re sure it’s not too complicated. You try to remember how to solve your issue but you can’t quite recall the right way, so you start searching online for help. After fruitlessly searching through numerous lengthy forum threads, detailed blog posts and hour long video tutorials, none of which quite addressed the simple question you have, you finally stumble upon the answer in the last place you look.

It should be easier to find answers to basic questions, but for testers working with automation, there hasn’t really been a go-to resource for this. It’s a little like trying to cook one of your favorite dishes when you’ve lost the recipe and cycling through ineffective substitutions until you figure it out again is a daunting and wasteful prospect – you’re going to spend a lot of time and ruin a lot of food.

SEE ALSO: Achieving Network Automation through Infrastructure as Code

A Cookbook Written by Test Automation Experts

The Automation Cookbook, a new test automation resource, aims to solve this issue for the engineering community. The Automation Cookbook is filled with individual bite-sized video recipes that solve specific problems testers might be having at any given moment. Need to interact with alerts, upload a file or manage cookies? The Automation Cookbook has you covered, for both Cypress and Selenium Java.

Been looking at @Applitools #testingCookbook this morning – it’s like a more focussed, automation-specific Stack Overflow (without the myriad of conflicting answers and the passive aggression).

Love it!! https://t.co/CmMsgR3SvD

— Beth Marshall (@Beth_AskHer) April 10, 2021

Each video is just 3-10 minutes long, so you don’t need to spend a long time wading through a larger tutorial or course to find answers. When you have a quick test automation question that you need an answer to, you can flip open the metaphorical cookbook and view the recipe for exactly what you’re trying to bake.

Here’s how it works. Let’s say you wanted to use Cypress to access an iFrame that’s embedded in your application. Rather than combing through numerous tutorials filled with screenshots and long descriptions to find your answer, you turn to the cookbook. You find the recipe, watch an expert walk you through it, and four minutes later you’re on your way with the answer.

The Automation Cookbook initiative is led by Angie Jones, Senior Director of Developer Relations at Applitools and Test Automation University, with contributions from Colby Fayock, Developer Advocate at Applitools.

According to Colby, “Our goal with the Automation Cookbook is to help engineers get answers to frequently asked questions with a visual coding recipe.”

Every Chef Needs a Test Kitchen

To help put the skills from the Cookbook into practice, there’s a parallel resource called the Test Kitchen. Here, engineers can sharpen their test automation skills by interacting with common web components such as alerts, sortable tables, iFrames, notifications, file uploads, dropdowns, and more. A whole pantry of web component ingredients that can be used for automated testing recipes.

The end result? An easily accessible collection of bite-sized video tutorials that can be rapidly tested and validated. This makes it easier to solve common problems quickly and save developers precious time.

This is a super awesome initiative the AUTOMATION COOKBOOK, thanks to @techgirl1908 and @Applitools for another great initiative. how can we contribute to make this bigger, I remember everyone struggling with some of these issues:https://t.co/LA3PpUl72y

— Mayank (@test_mayankp) April 22, 2021

SEE ALSO: Things to Watch Out for in Low-Code Process Automation

The Right Size Course for Your Needs

It’s worth noting that Angie and the Applitools team has a lot of experience with creating free educational materials around test automation. They are the creators of Test Automation University, a free resource for engineers to learn new tools and programming languages across various topics in automation. Test Automation University has surpassed 80,000 students to date and naturally complements the new Automation Cookbook for those seeking a more long-form educational experience.

Discussing her inspiration for the Cookbook, Angie said she recognized how common it is for engineers to run into a problem while writing a test. “Whether you’re trying to work with alerts or upload a file, you may not be looking for an entire end-to-end course, but a quick solution to a single problem. We designed this short-form education program to answer your questions.”

The Automation Cookbook currently has 16 recipes with more videos added regularly. Check it out today!

It is amazing! Thanks to you and the team! I’ve already take a look some of recipes and existing to get my hand dirty with some of flour

— Emre Abanozoğlu (@Abanozoglu) April 8, 2021

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