To round out my semester, before beginning my summer research opportunity, I looked into extraneous material for my classes as I finish up. In looking for a blog for the final week of finals, I went with something more akin to basic general information regarding testing. I selected an article based around the common mistakes or sins in mobile testing. This connected with my most recent final project for another class regarding mobile development. I struggled to test my project for this class, and I am sure I committed many of these sins. The article’s title is Five Sins of Mobile Testing by Josh Galde
This article is quite dated, and Galde begins with describing the demand for mobile devices, which has since skyrocketed. Companies at the time aimed to expand their web presence to mobile platforms, but often overlooked the constraints, leading to rushed development and potential errors. This is something I experienced in my own project, having trouble with the visual aspect of app development. The necessity to develop multiple versions of the same app to accommodate different devices and configurations. Is something of an issue outlined by Galde, and one I experienced when switching between different size devices. This is similar to a non-responsive website in web development. Glade explains that to create successful, user-friendly, and reliable mobile apps, we should follow the best practices and avoid common mistakes, or “sins,”. The first sin is relying solely on emulation software, as problematic because emulators can’t fully replicate real device behavior, especially with carrier networks.This is something I experienced through only emulator testing. The second sin is using jail broken devices, which can alter their functionality, leading to inaccurate testing results. The third sin is not utilizing automation. Automated testing can save time and reduce errors by efficiently handling the repetitive testing process across multiple devices and platforms, which might be tedious to do individually. The fourth sin is ignoring the need to support internal apps. This can be a dangerous error for applications developed for businesses, as it ignores the possibility of employees or members utilizing their own devices for organization apps. And one of the most egregious, and fifth sin is skipping testing on real devices. This is a common but risky practice, rushing app development without thorough testing. This can lead to catastrophic failures in the app. Proper testing is critical to ensure app reliability and success.
At the end of the semester, reflecting on my learning is paramount to actually achieve a change in how I think. My final project presentation just ended a week ago, and already I reflect on mistakes and poor practices to improve going forward. These sins are many I have committed and will now avoid going forward to improve as a programmer.
Source:https://www.stickyminds.com/article/five-sins-mobile-testing
From the blog CS@Worcester – WSU CS Blog: Ben Gelineau by Ben Gelineau and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.