What’s QTP?

Quick Test Professional (QTP) is another product from HP/Mercury (originally from Mercury Interactive) that provides automated functional testing capabilities.  The current version at the time of this writing is QTP version 10.0.  Generally, QTP is a record and playback tool similar to LoadRunner.  Although they look similar in terms of record and playback, they differ greatly in terms of what is recorded and what is playback.  QTP identify and records objects on the windows and rewrite the process of launching the object in a script (VB).  Example, QTP identifies and recognizes the click activity of the button on the web-browser or the web-application.  However, LoadRunner records whatever request made after the button is clicked (although Web Click & Script protocol supports this). Read the rest of this entry »

Zyntax: Java Serialized Stream Extension

If you are working with IBM Rational Robot and TestManager, and working with Java Serialized Stream, you may consider this 3rd party extension, JSS Extension from Zyntax. Usually serialized streams are not viewable by the user and this creates the challenge of customizing the serialized streams.  The JSS Extension transforms raw socket data in previously recorded test scripts into lines that separate and identify the data elements of the Java Objects being transferred. The newly formed scripts can then be used to perform load, stress, and performance testing and benchmarking against the application. Read the rest of this entry »

What’s SilkPerformer?

SilkPerformer 2008 is a load testing tool from Borland, originally from Segue. For a start, SilkPerformer are both performance testing tools and bears similarities with LoadRunner such as having a script-generating component (Vugen), a load orchestrating component (Controller) and an analyzing component (Analysis). Therefore, you may like to read about the product LoadRunner in “What’s LoadRunner?” to get a head start of typical performance testing tools before proceeding further on this article. The SilkPerformer suite consists of the Workbench, Silk TrueLog and Silk Performance Explorer. The entire load test implementation is the same where the load generators have to be installed at the machines. For the sales talk, please refer to the official vendor here and its technical publication here for more information. In actual comparison, SilkPerfomer has a close resemblance of Performance Center too. For more information of Performance Center, you may want to refer to “What’s Performance Center?” too. Read the rest of this entry »

What’s Performance Center?

Performance Center is an enterprise version of LoadRunner (LR) that allows concurrent runs in an organization by managing a pool of Controllers and Load generators. It is built on a web interface and suitable for organizations that require running multiple load test projects across the organization. You can find out more about the sales talk from the vendor here if you like. To put it simply, Performance Center can run multiple load test while LR can run a single load test. Read the rest of this entry »

What’s Bugnux?

Bugnux is a complete Linux distribution that runs from a bootable CD and runs entirely in RAM. Bugnux contains an extensive set of Open Source software testing tools that can be used for functional and performance testing. Tools to test GUI applications and Firefox addons to aid in web application testing have been packaged. Virtually turn any PC into black-box testing device without installing any software. A set of stress and load testing tools that can be used to assist in testing performance of web applications are included.

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