Why do you require both Automated and manual testing? Automated testing helps improve code coverage, test speed and profitability, but only as far as the scripts you write are good enough. Manual testing goes alongside and makes sure the software model and coding are sound and complete. These two Testing types can be executed side-by-side or independently. This article discusses both ways of testing software – Automated & Manual.
To understand Automated Testing, it’s essential to know why manual testing exists. The purpose of Automated Testing is to verify the program as desired by the end-users or customers. Automation testing typically improves code coverage, test speed and profitability, but only as far as the scripts you write are good enough. So Automation is not a replacement for manual testing. Instead, Automation is used to complement manual testing so that the developer can focus more time and attention on the programming aspect of the software. It’s a win-win situation, where both sides win: users get the highest quality software and the business benefits from lower cost and higher profit.
So, what are the advantages of using manual testing? If the tester is familiar with the software’s functionality, they can quickly determine whether the software satisfies the client’s requirements and report the results using the appropriate methodology. When it comes to programming, there are usually two approaches to testing: Manually controlled testing methods, which involves following a series of steps to generate code coverage results, or Automation, which is simply executing the code under specific parameters to create expected results. Both of these approaches have their pros and cons.
For example, when you use automated testing, developers only need to define the desired outcomes based on the inputs they have gotten from the tests to generate the code coverage reports. However, this method is only effective when you have already tested the functionality of the application thoroughly. The programmer still needs to verify the inputs received during the tests to ensure desired outcomes with automated testing. In most cases, it is challenging to test every possible information and outcome. When you use the previous method, even when you try manually, you would still need to verify whether the tests were executed correctly and whether all inputs and outcomes were recorded accurately.
But Automation and Testing can also have their disadvantages. The most significant burden of testing Automation is that the testers do not get as much time for themselves. Today, most testers are used to working in teams, where they are supposed to execute a particular set of tests and then submit their reports. When working in an organization with multiple departments, testers often find themselves spending more time with management, discussing why the tests were failed, and making suggestions about how to improve the future process.
On the other hand, using manual testing has its advantages too. It saves you the trouble of debugging the software program whenever you find a mistake in its implementation. Manual testers can discover even the most minor errors in a complex program, which means that a software development company can save much money that would otherwise be spent on compensating a manual tester for finding the mistake. Moreover, manual testing has the potential to find many bugs in a large number of software applications.
But both automation testing and manual testing have their pros and cons, which should be considered when choosing a method to implement in your company. So what are the advantages and disadvantages of Automation and Manual Testing? Let’s take a look at each of them:
Both automated and manual testing offers various benefits, which makes them popular choices for software quality assurance. However, some of these advantages only apply if you choose to use the latter. With a manual test, a tester can find and reproduce errors, which means he can also improvise the way it functions to correct as many problems as he can. On the other hand, Automation requires a bit more work, but the advantages it brings may make automating the entire testing process worthwhile.