Automated GUI Regression Testing Using AI Planning

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“Automated GUI Regression Testing Using AI Planning” by Atif M. Memon. In Artificial Intelligence Methods in Software Testing, vol. 56, 2004, pp. 51-100.

Abstract

A software's use of a graphical user interface (GUI) can significantly raise its cost of regression testing both because GUI software is modified and retested frequently and special characteristics of GUIs, such as event-driven input and graphical output prevent the application of automated regression testing techniques to GUIs. We demonstrate that a test suite originally used to test a GUI forms two partitions for the modified GUI: affected test cases that cannot be executed on the modified GUI and unaffected test cases that need not be executed. We present a novel technique for automated GUI regression testing using AI planning. We represent GUI test cases at a high level of abstraction using tasks (pairs of initial and goal states). We apply planning to regenerate affected test cases from these tasks and use them for retesting. Our traditional representation of GUI test cases as sequences of events and expected states already contains the necessary mechanism to associate a task with each test case. The planning technique also blends naturally with our test case generator that employs hierarchical planning to generate test cases.

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BibTeX entry:

@incollection{MemonWSSMPAI2004,
   author = {Atif M. Memon},
   title = {Automated {GUI} Regression Testing Using {AI} Planning},
   booktitle = {Artificial Intelligence Methods in Software Testing},
   volume = {56},
   pages = {51-100},
   publisher = {World Scientific Publishing Co.},
   year = {2004}
}

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