What is Test Script and Why it is so Important?

The software industry is always witnessing constant evolution with added functionality, new designs, and more information loaded on the pages which we see on our phones and personal computers. This happens so fast that the developers who are responsible to be testing these pages have to also constantly adapt to new testing techniques. If a tester is following an outdated testing technique or script will not catch any errors which might be introduced with new functionality in the software. 

The software which we use on our phones and pcs go through many development stages before being delivered to the clients as a fully developed business product. The first one is initial development, then launching and in the long run, the maintenance phase. The second one is also called the testing phase which includes all the important steps needed to make the software as bug-free as possible.  

What is a Test Script?

This is where Test scripts come in which is a simple "line by line" description of system functions that need to be verified for an app or an entire system. This is an automated script that enables testers to systematically test the software on all the devices under the testing bracket. Commonly implemented by Python, Batch Scripts, C, and C++, these scripts log all the expected results and entries for the tests to be done.

So How do Test Scripts Work?

Often confused with Test Cases, they are quite different. They are a manual explaining how to use a software or app for example, how to close a window and which button to press. This applies to every activity associated with a certain button. These scripts also explain what will be the outcome of each action. These scripts start from the basic functionalities to all the complex levels and added new features that demand more updated knowledge from the testers otherwise new bugs will not be discovered. 

The script should always come with useful information related to the software under test. A standard test script should come with the following information:

1. The inputs and outputs in the software.

2. The information which will be input by the users using the software, which info will be retained, and which will be discarded by the end of using the software. 

3. Additional info which needs to be displayed in the app while using the software functions.

4. Annotations used in the software which show a logical step to be executed in terms of actions from users.

Criteria for making a Test Script: 

Test scripts need to follow these fundamental criteria to find every possible bug a software may have: 

1. Clear and easy-to-understand information in the script which is covering all the scenarios in a software. This saves time for the tester and gets more precise results.

2. The test script must predict all the methods a user can use to use this software. This is incredibly important as using just one method by the testers can result in bugs in some other method of the user interface. If the test script is just specific to one method, this will give the tester report of no bugs but when shifted to another method will result in bugs one may not expect. 

3. The test script must come up with one specific action that will be taken by the testers to ensure that every testing job is evaluated according to the standard procedures and bug-free. 

4. Test scripts should be well designed without clutter for the testers to be as convenient as possible.

There are a lot of technical sides to Test scripts, but this post will restrict itself to just the theoretical part of them. This was a brief take on the famous query of what is test script and lays down the essential knowledge one needs to know to get started with software testing.