Intermediate Selenium WebDriver and Automation

 

In today’s fast-paced software development environment, automation testing is no longer a luxury but a necessity. With increasing competition and user expectations for flawless digital experiences, ensuring the reliability of web applications has become a critical priority. Selenium WebDriver, a powerful tool for web application testing, has emerged as a cornerstone for modern quality assurance engineers and developers.

However, mastering Selenium WebDriver requires more than just understanding the basics. To create robust, efficient, and scalable automation frameworks, professionals need to delve into advanced techniques and real-world applications. This is where the Intermediate Selenium WebDriver and Automation course on Coursera, offered by Packt Publishing, comes into play.

This course is a meticulously designed learning journey that bridges the gap between foundational knowledge and expert-level proficiency. Whether you are looking to tackle dynamic web elements, optimize your test execution, or integrate Selenium with other essential tools, this course equips you with the skills to succeed.

Course Overview

The "Intermediate Selenium WebDriver and Automation" course is tailored for individuals who already have a basic understanding of Selenium and are ready to explore its more advanced functionalities. It’s a structured, hands-on program that delves into sophisticated concepts, enabling learners to manage complex automation challenges effectively.

Key Features of the Course

Platform: Coursera, known for its diverse range of professional courses.

Provider: Packt Publishing, a trusted name in tech education.

Level: Intermediate, ideal for those with prior Selenium experience.

Duration: Flexible pacing, allowing you to learn at your convenience.

Focus Areas: Advanced Selenium techniques, real-world scenarios, integration with tools, and best practices in test automation.

Who Should Take This Course?

This course is suitable for:

Quality Assurance Engineers: QA professionals looking to refine their automation skills to tackle more complex testing scenarios.

Developers: Software engineers who want to incorporate automated testing into their development workflows.

Students and Career Changers: Individuals transitioning into a testing role or expanding their skill set in software quality assurance.

Prerequisites

To maximize your learning experience, you should have:

A foundational understanding of Selenium WebDriver.

Basic knowledge of programming languages like Java, Python, or C#.

Familiarity with web technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

What you'll learn

• Understand the installation and configuration of Selenium WebDriver for multiple browsers
• Apply skills to automate web tests across different operating systems
• Analyze and locate web elements using advanced XPath and CSS Selectors
• Evaluate and implement efficient wait strategies for reliable test execution

Why Choose This Course?

1. Industry-Relevant Content

Packt Publishing’s courses are crafted by experts with real-world experience. This course not only teaches theory but emphasizes practical, applicable skills that can be directly implemented in your projects.

2. Hands-On Learning

The course includes extensive hands-on exercises and assignments. These practical components ensure you’re not just learning concepts but actively applying them to build expertise.

3. Flexible Learning

Coursera’s platform allows you to learn at your own pace, making it ideal for busy professionals. You can revisit modules, replay lectures, and practice as needed.

4. Career Boost

With Selenium being one of the most sought-after skills in the QA and development domains, this course can significantly enhance your career prospects. Whether you’re aiming for a promotion, transitioning to automation, or simply staying competitive, this course is a valuable asset.

Future Enhancements for the Course

To remain at the forefront of automation testing education, here are potential enhancements for the "Intermediate Selenium WebDriver and Automation" course:

Inclusion of AI-Powered Testing Tools:

Covering AI-driven tools like Testim or Applitools for smarter test generation and visual testing.

Advanced Debugging Techniques:

Modules on leveraging machine learning for log analysis and bug prediction.

Cloud-Based Test Execution:

Detailed insights into running tests on cloud platforms like AWS Device Farm or Azure DevOps.

Integration with DevOps Ecosystem:

Enhanced focus on integrating Selenium tests into comprehensive DevOps workflows.

Support for Emerging Frameworks:

Tutorials on using Selenium with modern web frameworks like Angular, React, or Vue.js.

Interactive Community Features:

Creating a collaborative space for learners to share their projects and solve challenges together.

Expanded Real-World Scenarios:

Additional case studies and exercises reflecting cutting-edge industry practices.

Video Tutorials on Advanced Concepts:

Step-by-step walkthroughs of complex Selenium setups and configurations.

How to Get the Most Out of This Course

Brush Up on Basics: Before starting, ensure you’re comfortable with Selenium basics and your chosen programming language.

Engage Actively: Participate in quizzes, assignments, and discussion forums to reinforce your learning.

Build Projects: Use the knowledge gained to create your own automation projects, experimenting with new tools and frameworks.

Leverage Additional Resources: Complement the course material with books, blogs, and the official Selenium documentation.

Join Free: Intermediate Selenium WebDriver and Automation

Conclusion:

Automation testing is a cornerstone of modern software development, and mastering it can unlock countless opportunities. The "Intermediate Selenium WebDriver and Automation" course on Coursera stands out as an excellent resource for those looking to elevate their skills.

With a focus on advanced techniques, integration, and practical applications, this course equips you to tackle real-world challenges confidently. Whether you’re enhancing your current skills or paving the way for a new career direction, this course is a step in the right direction.

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XPath in Selenium Webdriver

Automation involves identifying the elements on the UI and performing actions on them, so in order to identify the UI elements there are various locators available on the HTML DOM  by means of which Selenium WebDriver is able to identify and automate them.

In some cases if these elements are not found using other locators such as Id, Class, Css etc then Xpaths are used.

What is Xpath?

XPath (XML Path Language) is a query language for selecting nodes from an XML document.

Xpath language provides the ability to navigate around XML tree and select the  nodes by various criteria.

Below is an example of XML tree:

In this example Product is the Root Element of the tree and the two child nodes of Product are Name and Detail

Understanding HTML Dom

Whenever a web page is loaded, the browser creates a Document Object Model of the page.

The HTML DOM is a standard object model and programming interface for HTML. It defines:

The HTML elements as objects

The properties of all HTML elements

The methods to access all HTML elements

The events for all HTML elements

In other words: The HTML DOM is a standard for how to get, change, add, or delete HTML elements.

The HTML DOM is constructed as a tree of objects:

In order to start studying about xpath it is very important to have some basic knowledge about the DOM structure.

Consider the below HTML DOM of facebook signup page.

Let us concentrate on the highlighted portion of the DOM:

Here "input" is a tag and "class,data-type,name,aria-required,placeholder aria-label and id" are known as attributes.Each of these attributes have some values which are used for creating the html page.

When should xpath be used:

Elements on any UI can be located using various html attributes such as ID,Class,name etc,but many a times it happens that:

1. The attributes that are supported by selenium webdriver are not present 

2. The attributes that are available are not unique.

In such cases xpaths can be used to locate the UI elements. Xpaths can easily traverse through the HTML nodes and this feature provides a lot of flexibility to create unique identifiers.

Basic syntax of xpath:

//tagname[@attribute_name='attribute_value']

Explanation:

//-Selects nodes in the document from the current node that match the selection no matter where they are

@-Selects attribute

Let us look at a simple example below

We have created an xpath for locating first name text box by using the basic syntax-//tagname[@attribute_name='attribute_value']

In the above created xpath input is the tag name,name is the attribute and 'firstname' is the value of the attribute name.

Typing the above xpath in the html dom highlights the HTML element that points to firstname textbox on the UI which assures that the created xpath is a correct one.

 

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Types of Xpath

There are 3 types of xpaths:

1. Absolute xpath

2. Relative xpath

3. Partial xpath

Let us go through each one of them one by one:

1.    Absolute xpath: It uses complete path from the root element to the desired element.The key characteristic of Absolute XPath is that it begins with the single forward slash(/) ,which means you can select the element from the root node and the root node for any web page is 'html' always.

Absolute xpaths are very fragile and are not used widely since in order to reach a particular node you have to traverse from the beginning till the required node. If at any further point in time extra web elements are added on the page then the absolute xpath that was created becomes invalid.

Below is an example of absolute xpath that can be directly copied by using firepath plugin in Mozilla web browser.

In the above snap we can see that the xpath for Google maps starts from the tag html-this is the root node, which indicates the beginning of the DOM structure. From html we navigate down to google maps node by node.

2.   Relative Xpath:

As we have seen in the above Google maps example, the absolute xpath that is generated is very lengthy and there are high chances that this xpath would vary with every release due to addition or removal of UI elements. To avoid frequent occurrence of 'No such element found' error we can use relative xpaths.

Relative xpath searches for matching element anywhere in the HTML DOM.

It starts with a double slash(//) which indicates to search an element anywhere on the HTML DOM.

Basic syntax for this is:

//tagname[@attribute_name='attribute_value']

3.    Partial Xpath(Dynamic xpath):

     Dynamic/Custom xpaths are used to narrow down the matching nodes which helps to efficiently identify web elements.

      They are also used to create xpaths of webelemnts that change each time when a webpage loads.

      There are various ways in which we can create dynamic xpaths which will be explained one by one below:

1.Using contains() and starts with()

2.Using AND and OR conditions

3.Using multiple attributes

4.Using Siblings

5.Using Ancestors

1.Using contains() and starts-with():

These functions can be used in the below situations:

•     When the HTML properties/attributes are not very clear for any webelement.
•     When we want to create a list of elements having same partial value
•     When the values of attributes are dynamic

Syntax for contains:

•     By text-//tagname[contains(text(),'anytext')]
•     //tagname[contains(.,'text')]

Consider below example,xpath for 'Create an account' text is created using contains function

In the above xpath '.' can be replaced by text() method.The only difference is

Eg. //span[contains(text(),'Create an account')]

By Attribute:

//tagname[contains(@attribute_name,'attributevalue')]

Let us look at the below example where we have created an xpath for title 'facebook' using partial attribute name.

If sometimes the html attributes are not very clear as in below example then we can use partial attribute name using contains().

Using starts-with()

• Similar to contains(),starts-with() function can be used to create partial xpaths. In situations where the attribute values are not clear starts with can be used.For eg.

In the below example the value of attribute class is a bit since there is a space between the 2 words,hence we can use starts-with function here

2.Using AND and OR conditions

In OR expression, two conditions are used, whether 1st condition OR 2nd condition should be true. It is also applicable if any one condition is true or maybe both. Means any one condition should be true to find the element.

In the below XPath expression, it identifies the elements whose single or both conditions are true.

Xpath=//*[@type='submit' OR @name='btnReset']

Highlighting both elements as "LOGIN " element having attribute 'type' and "RESET" element having attribute 'name'.

Similarly AND condition can also be used that combines 2 attributes:

Below is an xpath to identify Experience button in naukri profile:

3.Using multiple attributes:

Multiple attributes can be used to create unique xpaths.

Consider below example where in you have same class name for mutliple webelements and you need an xpath for locating Today's Deal.

Below we have created xpath using only 'class' attribute which shows that there are 7 elements on the webpage that have class name as 'nav-a'

But in order to locate Today's Deal we can take help of another attribute here which is tabindex. Creating xpath using these two attributes will give us a unique xpath.Refer below snapshot

Using xpath axes:

      XPath axis defines a node-set relative to the current node. Names of axes include       “ancestor”, “descendant”, “parent” ,following,preceding

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