Method, system and article of manufacture for testing a software application having a text-based screen with a test tool for a software application having a graphical user interface which uses objects

• US 20060022972A1
• Filed: 07/29/2004
• Published: 02/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Tao, Zhong, Krishnamoorthy, Lalitha, Garcowski, Jason Chester
• Granted Patent: US 7,392,506 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/418
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3668 Software testing software testing in telephone exchanges H04M3/242, testing of hardware G06F11/22

Abstract

Various embodiments of a method, apparatus and article of manufacture that identify a boundary of a field of a text-based screen for a test tool are provided. These embodiments allow single test tool to test software applications that have a text-based screen and software applications that have a graphical user interface with Java objects.

Claims

1. A method of identifying a boundary of a field of a text-based screen for a test tool, the text-based screen being associated with a screen Java object, a text-based screen having a text area, the text-based screen having a plurality of text-based fields in the text area, the text-based fields being associated with respective field Java objects, comprising:

associating a screen proxy Java object with the screen Java object, the screen proxy Java object being accessible to the test tool;

associating field proxy Java objects with respective field Java objects, the field proxy Java objects being accessible to the test tool;

determining a starting screen pixel location of the text area of the screen Java object;

determining a text-based row, a text-based starting column and a text-based ending column which is associated with one of the field Java objects that is associated with a particular field proxy Java object;

determining a field corner pixel location based on the text-based row, the text-based starting column and the starting screen pixel location;

determining a field pixel width based on the text-based starting column and the text-based ending column;

determining a field pixel height of the text-based row; and

providing the field corner pixel location, the field pixel width and the field pixel height to the test tool.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said determining the field corner pixel location comprises:

determining a starting corner pixel location of a field associated with the field Java object that is associated with the particular field proxy Java object based on the text-based row and the text-based starting column; and

computing the field corner pixel location based on the starting corner pixel location and the starting screen pixel location.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said determining the field pixel height comprises:

determining a screen pixel height of the text area of the screen Java object;

determining a number of rows in the text area of the screen Java object; and

computing a row pixel height by dividing the screen pixel height by the number of rows in the text area, wherein the field pixel height is based on the row pixel height.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said determining the field pixel width comprises:

determining a column pixel width of the text-based ending column;

determining a starting horizontal pixel location of the text-based starting column;

determining an ending horizontal pixel location of the text-based ending column; and

computing the field pixel width based on the column pixel width, the starting horizontal pixel location and the ending horizontal pixel location.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing one or more properties based on the field Java object associated with the particular field proxy Java object.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein one of the properties indicates whether a field associated with the field Java object that is associated with the particular field proxy Java object is blinking.

7. An article of manufacture comprising a computer usable medium embodying one or more instructions executable by a computer for performing a method of identifying a boundary of a field of a text-based screen for a test tool, the text-based screen being associated with a screen Java object, a text-based screen having a text area, the text-based screen having a plurality of text-based fields in the text area, the text-based fields being associated with respective field Java objects, said method comprising:

associating a screen proxy Java object with the screen Java object, the screenProxy Java object being accessible to the test tool;

associating field proxy Java objects with respective field Java objects, the field proxy Java object being accessible to the test tool;

determining a starting screen pixel location of the text area of the screen Java object;

determining a text-based row, a text-based starting column and a text-based ending column which is associated with one of the field Java objects that is associated with a particular field proxy Java object;

determining a field corner pixel location based on the text-based row, the text-based starting column and the starting screen pixel location;

determining a field pixel width based on the text-based starting column and the text-based ending column;

determining a field pixel height of the text-based row; and

providing the field corner pixel location, the field pixel width and the field pixel height to the test tool.

8. The article of manufacture of claim 7 wherein said determining said field corner pixel location comprises:

determining a starting corner pixel location of a field associated with the field Java object that is associated with the particular field proxy Java object based on the text-based row and the text-based starting column; and

computing the field corner pixel location based on the starting corner pixel location and the starting screen pixel location.

9. The article of manufacture of claim 7 wherein said determining the field pixel height comprises:

determining a screen pixel height of the text area of the screen Java object;

determining a number of rows in the text area of the screen Java object; and

computing a row pixel height by dividing the screen pixel height by the number of rows in the text area, wherein the field pixel height is based on the row pixel height.

10. The article of manufacture of claim 7 wherein said determining the field pixel width comprises:

determining a column pixel width of the text-based ending column;

determining a starting horizontal pixel location of the text-based starting column;

determining an ending horizontal pixel location of the text-based ending column; and

computing the field pixel width based on the column pixel width, the starting horizontal pixel location and the ending horizontal pixel location.

11. The article of manufacture of claim 7 wherein said method further comprises:

providing one or more properties based on the field Java object associated with the particular field proxy Java object.

12. The article of manufacture of claim 11 wherein one of the properties indicates whether a field associated with the field Java object that is associated with the particular field proxy Java object is blinking.

13. An apparatus for identifying a boundary of a field of a text-based screen for a test tool, the text-based screen being associated with a screen Java object, a text-based screen having a text area, the text-based screen having a plurality of text-based fields in the text area, the text-based fields being associated with respective field Java objects, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory comprising one or more instructions that;

associate a screen proxy Java object with the screen Java object, the screen proxy Java object being accessible to the test tool;

associate field proxy Java objects with respective field Java objects, the field proxy Java objects being accessible to the test tool;

determine a starting screen pixel location of the text area of the screen Java object;

determine a text-based row, a text-based starting column and a text-based ending column which is associated with one of the field Java objects that is associated with a particular field proxy Java object;

determine a field corner pixel location based on the text-based row, the text-based starting column and the starting screen pixel location;

determine a field pixel width based on the text-based starting column and the text-based ending column;

determine a field pixel height of the text-based row; and

provide the field corner pixel location, the field pixel width and the field pixel height to the test tool.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the one or more instructions that determine the field corner pixel location also:

determine a starting corner pixel location of a field associated with the field Java object that is associated with the particular field proxy Java object based on the text-based row and the text-based starting column; and

compute the field corner pixel location based on the starting corner pixel location and the starting screen pixel location.

15. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein said one or more instructions that determine the field pixel height also:

determine a screen pixel height of the text area of the screen Java object;

determine a number of rows in the text area of the screen Java object; and

compute a row pixel height by dividing the screen pixel height by the number of rows in the text area, wherein the field pixel height is based on the row pixel height.

16. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein said one or more instructions that determine the field pixel width also:

determine a column pixel width of the text-based ending column;

determine a starting horizontal pixel location of the text-based starting column;

determine an ending horizontal pixel location of the text-based ending column; and

compute the field pixel width based on the column pixel width, the starting horizontal pixel location and the ending horizontal pixel location.

17. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein said one or more instructions also:

provide one or more properties based on the field Java object associated with the particular field proxy Java object.

18. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein one of the properties indicates whether a field associated with the field Java object that is associated with the particular field proxy Java object is blinking.