Manual testing remains an essential part of the software testing process in 2023, even with the rise of automated testing. Thorough manual testing is key to ensuring web applications function as expected across different browsers, devices, and use cases before launching.
This article will provide a comprehensive guide on effectively performing manual testing for web applications this year. We’ll cover the fundamentals of manual testing, best practices, tips for testing various web elements, handling responsive design, and recommendations for test case management.
Fundamentals of Manual Testing
Manual testing refers to testing software manually, without the aid of automated tools. In manual testing, testers interact with the application themselves and verify whether it functions correctly across the different use cases.
Some key objectives of manual testing include:
- Validating that all application requirements are met
- Checking that the user interface and workflows perform as designed
- Identifying bugs and defects in the application
- Testing site responsiveness across browsers, devices, and screen sizes
- Providing feedback to the development team on issues found
Even with test automation, manual testing remains essential for:
- Testing new features or flows before automating tests
- Exploratory testing to find tricky edge case bugs
- Validating fixes for bugs found during automated testing
- Testing complex user interface interactions difficult to automate
- Gauging real-world usability of the application
Best Practices for Effective Manual Testing
Follow these best practices for effective manual testing in 2023:
- Analyze requirements early – Review product requirements, user stories and specs thoroughly before testing. Understand desired functionality.
- Design test cases upfront – Define detailed test cases and scenarios to evaluate before testing. Cover all requirements.
- Prioritize critical processes – Focus manual testing on most important workflows and error conditions first.
- Perform exploratory testing – Alongside formal test cases, do ad hoc testing to find unexpected bugs.
- Isolate testing – Verify modules or functions independently before testing their integration.
- Define & track metrics – Establish metrics like defects found to measure test quality and coverage.
- Retest fixes – Confirm any bugs found earlier are fixed with rigorous retesting.
- Collaborate with team – Work closely with devs, BAs and users to maximize test effectiveness.
- Automate when possible – Utilize test automation to supplement manual testing efforts where feasible.
Testing Web Application User Interface Elements
When testing web application UIs, focus on these common elements:
Navigation Menu
- Test all navigation paths. Verify links route to correct pages.
Forms
- Check form field validation. Test submission with valid and invalid data.
Buttons
- Click buttons to verify they trigger intended actions.
Error Messages
- Intentionally generate errors. Confirm clear, user-friendly messaging.
Links
- Validate links navigate to proper endpoints or content. Check for broken links.
Images
- Confirm images display properly across browsers. Verify responsiveness.
Test Responsiveness Across Devices and Browsers
With web applications now accessed on a plethora of devices, responsiveness is critical. When manually testing, validate that the application appropriately adapts across:
Mobile Devices
- Test on iOS and Android phones and tablets. Confirm UI and fonts resize correctly.
Desktop Browsers
- Verify support across latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge.
Browser Windows
- Resize browser windows to test responsiveness. Mimic mobile, tablet and full desktop viewports.
Zoom Levels
- Zoom in and out on pages to confirm UI integrity at different magnification levels.
Landscape/Portrait Mode
- Rotate mobile browsers between portrait and landscape orientations to test adaption.
Legacy Browsers
- Occasionally check legacy browser support if business requires it.
Network Conditions
- Limit network speed to simulate real-world mobile/desktop environments.
Test Case Management Recommendations
To maximize efficiency in manual testing:
- Utilize a Requirements Management tool to link tests to requirements for traceability.
- Manage test cases and defects in an issue-tracking system like Jira. Maintain version history.
- Follow a consistent process for authoring and executing test cases.
- Reuse and update automated UI test cases for manual execution where applicable.
- Allow manual testers to log defects directly into the issue tracking system.
- Analyze defect metrics like volumes and severity to focus testing.
- Develop a structured test reporting system to communicate results to stakeholders.
Conclusion
Robust manual testing remains crucial for delivering high-quality web applications, despite advances in test automation. Utilizing the strategies outlined in this guide will assist testers in performing effective manual testing that finds critical defects before they reach end-users. Adopting manual testing best practices, with a focus on usability and responsiveness, will lead to web applications that exceed customer expectations in 2023.
