Quality assurance testing is one of the most important aspects of the modern application development and testing life cycle. This is because the user interface elements of a modern app form the bridge between the source code and the end users. Using the UI, the end users can not only navigate through the application interface but also perform their intended tasks. Due to the complex nature of modern app infrastructure, issues are a common phenomenon in the quality assurance testing process. So, the app developers must use advanced testing processes like the integration of test automation to deal with all of these errors. It is also important to improve the coordination between the development and testing teams of the company.
With this article, we are going to discuss the most efficient way of reporting quality assurance issues while performing the testing cycle. We will also go through some of the most important practices that app developers and testers must implement in their quality assurance testing cycle.
How Does Quality Assurance Testing Affect Modern App Testing
The earlier applications had a simple interface that aimed to perform only one function while working on one platform at a time. However, with the evolution of technology and the rising demands of the end users, the app infrastructure has gone through a few rapid changes. For instance, modern apps can serve multiple functions and are compatible with multiple devices like smartphones, tablets, and even desktops. Due to these complexities, the app developers have to add several compatibility layers so that the end users can easily navigate through the application interface and perform their daily tasks. An effective and intuitive user interface is one such compatibility layer that helps app developers serve their basic functions.
However, while implementing the user interface of a modern application, app developers must remember that there will be multiple variations in terms of software and hardware specifications along with display resolution. So, it is very important to perform efficient quality assurance test cases to ensure that despite all these changes, the user interface elements can not only retain their position but also remain functional in all instances. Let us now go through some of the most important parameters that can justify the integration of quality assurance testing in the modern application development and testing life cycle:
- Maintaining the UI Stability: By implementing the quality assurance test cases, the application developers can ensure that all the UI elements of the app are not only functional on multiple devices but also maintain their position. This becomes a very important parameter as modern devices vary in terms of display resolution and other hardware and software parameters. Since the UI is the critical source of communication between the app infrastructure and the end users, its functionality becomes highly important.
- Implementation of Certifications and Market Compliances: Quality assurance testing allows the application developers and testers to implement various certifications and compliances that are crucial for displaying the quality of the app and the integrity of its infrastructure. For instance, modern applications like health apps and shopping apps store a lot of sensitive user information and their credentials. Therefore, with the help of these certifications, the companies can send a clear message about the security of their interface and user privacy. Moreover, it helps to avoid various legal complications and even a complete ban on the app that may be imposed by multiple countries.
- Path for Future Updates: By implementing quality assurance test cases, the application developers can ensure that all the user interface elements can coexist properly without any critical issues. It is a very important parameter as modern app developers release frequent updates that add various new features. So, with the help of proper QA testing, it is possible to ensure that all the new elements do not harm the functioning of the existing elements in the application infrastructure. It is worth mentioning that in a worst-case scenario, these issues can completely crash the app and send a negative message about the company’s practices.
- Collaboration in the Company: While performing quality assurance testing, the application developers and testers can improve the collaboration between all the members of the app company. This process has a crucial role in detecting and removing the bugs as soon as they appear in the application infrastructure. Moreover, it also helps to maintain a basic knowledge about the current status of the app development project.
Efficiently Reporting Quality Assurance Issues
The developers must understand that it is very crucial to report quality assurance issues. This is because the proper reporting process will assist in the identification, addressing, and resolution process. To assist new automation testers and developers, we have mentioned some of the most important steps that can help in the efficient reporting of quality assurance issues:
Documenting the Issue
As soon as the quality assurance testers encounter a problem, they have to quickly document it thoroughly. During the documentation process, they must include specifications like the date, time, the process, or the product involved. They should also include any other relevant details that will help keep track of all these issues and help the company avoid them in the coming years.
Implementation of Standard Format
it is very crucial to implement a structure and consistent format for reporting the quality as soon as issues arise. The application testers should consider the prospect of including a template or specific format that consists of multiple fields for describing the problem. They should also include other parameters like the impact of the issue, its severity, and the possible solutions that can help resolve the problem. During the implementation of such formats, it is very important to include all the members of the app development team to create a basic awareness of the current status of the development project.
Providing Clear Description
It is vital to clearly describe the problem including details like the symptoms, frequency, and any potential causes that the testers suspect for the problem. During this process, we would advise the application developers to be specific and factual and avoid implementing any ambiguous language. This is because the issue reports will be analyzed by all the members of the app development company even those who do not possess the required technical knowledge.
Attaching Supporting Evidence
To better help in tracking the errors of quality assurance testing, the application developers can attach logs, screenshots error messages, or any supporting documentation. Using visual data like these, the app developers can not only better explain the issue but also easily navigate to the error for performing the required action. Visual evidence also helps to elaborate the errors to all the business and production members of the app company who might lack the required knowledge about multiple programming languages or development tools. Moreover, it is easier to track visual information compared to complicated bug tracker logs.
Implementation of Automation Testing
The implementation of test automation has a massive impact on improving the efficiency of test reporting and bug-tracking features while implementing a quality assurance process. This is because by using automation testing, the app developing companies can massively improve the coordination between the development and testing teams.
For the basics, it is the process of automatically initiating the test instances using predetermined testing parameters and user statistics. All these data allow the system to emulate human interactions while communicating with the app and verify its ease of user interaction. While implementing automation testing, the app developers can also integrate various customizations to ensure that the test instances are suited according to the project requirements. This process not only ensures that both these processes are conducted simultaneously but also ensures that bugs and errors are detected and removed as soon as they appear in the core framework of the application.
To further elevate the efficiency of the automated quality assurance test cases, app developers can also use various cloud platforms in the testing infrastructure. Cloud platforms allow the execution of automated QA test cases on thousands of real devices through the integration of remote servers. Moreover, advanced platforms like LambdaTest allow additional features like access to outdated devices, live test activity logs, detecting bugs with a native bug tracker, and importing automation test cases from various reputed frameworks.LambdaTest is an AI-powered test orchestration and execution platform that lets you run manual and automated tests at scale with over 3000+ real devices, browsers, and OS combinations.
The Implementation of a Test Plan
By using a test plan, the application developers can prepare the testing environment to detect and log all the bugs. This test plan will also provide a comprehensive list of all the strategies that the companies will implement, the programming languages that will be used, and the backup resolution for any errors that might arise in the testing infrastructure. Using a test plan, the app companies can prepare their teams to avoid any unwanted obstacles during the application development life cycle. While creating the test plan, it is also important to consider integrating a test management tool to log multiple bugs and errors.
Learning and Improving
The application testers can use all the reported bugs as learning opportunities to understand the most vulnerable areas of the application that they are currently working on. This knowledge will help them to improve their experience and avoid such areas in future application development projects.
The app developers must remember that effective communication is the fundamental factor in reporting quality assurance issues. So, they must implement clear, concise, and detailed reporting to greatly contribute towards efficient resolution of all the issues that can arise during the testing process. We advise the application developers to name the quality assurance test cases based on the target elements to avoid any confusion while implementing the bug reporting process.
Final Verdict
Efficiently reporting the issues in quality assurance testing helps to maintain the communication cycle required for the smooth execution of the application development life cycle. Moreover, it is also important for the developers to understand the exact strategy for quality assurance testing will depend on the development project, the company standards, and the preferences of the testers. It is also important to constantly monitor the target audience and understand how developers can customize the app standards to improve their market reach. Finally, it is very important to constantly integrate all the new automation testing practices in the test environment to improve the company’s image and maintain its position in this competitive segment of the industry.