Load Testing with Selenium

by EternallyCool.net on February 17, 2022

Load testing is essential in ensuring that your software or device works properly. Before you can release it for others to use, you want to make sure that it will not cause any issues with consumers or with widespread usage. After all, you plan for success, not failure, and you want to protect yourself so that you can succeed fully. Load testing is one way to do this. Selenium is one option for load testing, offering consistent and accurate results each time. It can help you to get the right results, and there are plenty of people who rely on it. However, it might not be the best tool on the market for such a thing.

Load Testing and Selenium

When you run a website or software, or have made a new device, you have to make sure that your creation works. Part of this is making sure that it works under pressure. If it cracks or if it experiences issues with regular usage, or when there is a high amount of usage, you will want to fix that before sending it out. You also want to test its limits, see how it functions, and learn more about its functionality under heavy usage.

Doing this with Selenium is possible. Selenium allows you to load test quite effectively, and it is a somewhat popular option for it. However, it is not the best. For most people, Selenium is an advance option that goes beyond what you need. Paying money for it might not be the best idea if you only want to load test.

The Results

If you prefer Selenium for any reason or already have it, you can use it for load testing. It works exceptionally well for load running performance tests. Its results are accurate and consistent, and it has a lot of other features that make it effective for this. You can expect great work every time, and you can use it rather easily. It is something that you can begin using for your business nearly immediately.

Anyone considering Selenium for load testing should see positive results. While it is not the perfect choice in this situation, because it might be more than you need, it does a great job. High quality, accurate, and consistent, it is one of the best software out there. If you like it for what it is, it is well worth getting.

Avoiding Problems With Your Web Applications

by EternallyCool.net on October 28, 2022

Web applications are among the most effective advancements in the digital realm as it has literally changed how users interact with websites and eCommerce storefronts. If you’re searching for a way to enhance user experiences while streamlining various site processes, then you’ll likely adopt an application solution. While web applications can streamline order processing, customer service and inter-office communications, it’s only as effective as its operation. Before an application goes live, you must perform a wide array of load testing; however, even after the app is launched, there are several steps all website administrators must focus on to ensure an application continuously operates at its optimum performance standards.

Establishing Specific Performance Parameters

The most effective step all application developers and administrators can take is to establish specific parameters regarding the performance and functionality of a website. These parameters allow each critical step of an application to be fully monitored and managed for optimum performance. The most effective roles in these parameters include:

Dedicated Testing Team - The most complex and crucial an application becomes, the greater the need for a dedicated testing and monitoring team. While this team may consist of one person, these professionals are responsible for monitoring APM results and running various system tests to ensure optimum performance on all levels. Imagine this team as the gatekeepers for an effective application.

Database Administrator (DBA) - Database administrators are responsible for identifying database issues and proactively solving problems that may arise within the database, such as transaction timeouts and row locking.
Dedicated Development Team - In the quest to avoid problems with a web application, a dedicated development team works to identify and investigate stability, transaction and performance problems. This team is also responsible for continuously reviewing code and looking for ways to improve the overall functionality of an application at the code-level. This role is critical for complex web applications.
Quality Assurance Manager - While a QA manager may not be an appropriate level of monitoring for all enterprises, this role ensures all application builds are thoroughly tested before going live. If your site is a large and complex eCommerce portal or if your web applications are dynamic and complex by nature, then a QA manager is more than suggested, it’s required.

Continually Strive to Answer These Questions

Because the world of web applications is so dynamic and ever-changing, tips to avoid problems within these apps are difficult to define. That being noted, there are many instances where potential problems can be avoided by simply answering a few questions. Regardless of the purpose of complexity of an application, the following questions are designed to help identify current and potential app issues/errors:

How many super users can a single server process before the response time falls below acceptable standards?
As you add more hardware to an application, do the test results scale linearly?
What are, if any, scalability issues that may cause the web application from performing at optimum levels when it goes live?
How many synchronized requests can an application handle before it begins to bottleneck and reduce performance?

Cloud-Based Browser Automation: Selecting the Appropriate Software

by EternallyCool.net on October 28, 2022

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Whether you’ve created a new application specifically for the cloud or you wish to integrate your existing application to the all-powerful cloud, it’s essential that you establish a monitoring system capable of handling the unique demands cloud-based applications require. While there are many different features and advantages of hosting your applications on the cloud, when it comes to monitoring these applications, you should keep your eye out for several specific features and capabilities.

Real-Time Application Performance Visualization

In order to truly have confidence in your cloud-based application, the amount of information you require delves far deeper than infrastructure metrics. It’s essential that your application monitoring solution is able to provide detailed information regarding each transaction and how events are processed at the code level. Moreover, this information must be delivered to you in real-time. Real-time visualization monitoring allows administrators instant access to the performance and functionality of an app - essential for the high demands associated with cloud-based applications.

Cloud Infrastructure Health Monitoring

Perhaps one of the most important features to look for in a cloud application monitoring tool is its ability to provide you the current health levels for all infrastructure components. It’s only through this information that you’re able to better manage the infrastructure of your applications. Look for a system capable of reporting performance and tier availability.

Cloud Application Latency Optimization for Shared or Nonprofit Servers

The road to establishing a cloud based application is not free from complications and unexpected speed bumps. One of the most important elements to seek out when choosing an application monitoring system for cloud-based apps is its ability to optimize application latency specifically for cloud infrastructure. This is the only way to instantly isolate and resolve performance-dragging bottlenecks before they alter user experiences.

One thing to understand about latency is that if you’re running a lower end server (such as something you might find with a nonprofit hosting account) then it’s possible that your level of latency could be quite high. According to Web Hosting Buddy, many people in this situation would be wise to consider whether or not a the savings encountered by using a nonprofit server are truly “worth it” in the long run compared to the hassle. In some situations, it’s really not a good idea to use low end hosting because the time that you spend without good support and fixing things can create bigger issues in the end, making it much more worth your time to get quality hosting, especially if you’re running a web application on your server.

Establish Accurate Application Baselines

Perhaps one of the vital, yet most often overlooked, elements involved in cloud-based application monitoring is establishing current baselines based upon historical and forecasted trends. If the amount of traffic your application experiences dramatically fluctuates, then the cloud should automatically adjust to meet these new demands; however, the majority of application monitoring solutions isn’t able to handle these dynamic and complex commands. Baselining your application means being able to understand how your application works on a “normal” day. It’s only when you’re able to set these baselines you can reserve space and functionality for moments of extreme use. In these situations, it may be wise to consider some type of browser automation in order to get track of baseline performance. Not only do these baselines help identify the ideal scalability level for your application, but it also allows administrators a clearer view into errors and problems that may arise. By comparing real-time processes with the established baselines, identifying errors and performance issues is streamlined for powerful, and time-sensitive, fixes.

Enhance Website Security With Continual Application Monitoring

by EternallyCool.net on September 7, 2022

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The majority, if not all, enterprises use some form of web applications to execute their necessary processes and communications. Regardless of the purpose of an application, these unique and effective page elements can prove to be serious security vulnerabilities. In an effort to thwart hacking and other malicious attempts, there are several tips you can utilize to secure your website through application monitoring solutions. Obviously, these solutions may not be ideal for every site, but its basic principles are universal throughout digital enterprises.

Adjust the Stream of Incoming Data

Perhaps one of the most substantial issues many organizations must face when it comes to web application monitoring is the sheer amount of front end data. From the standpoint of web application monitoring, the amount of front end data that comes through to administrators is either too much or too little; however, in order to catch malicious attacks, it’s essential that you streamline the amount of incoming data. Set rules regarding what’s reported to include only the most important data elements, and learn how to consolidate similar data strings into a single file so logs aren’t bogged down with repetitive information, which can make pinpointing malicious attacks or hack attempts difficult to identify.

Create a Web Application Firewall

Just as a firewall protects your local network from malicious attacks, it’s essential that you establish an application firewall to surround all of your applications. While there are many application firewall tools available to enterprises, make sure you choose one that automatically manages its settings based upon the dynamic use and behavior of your application along with virtual website vulnerability patches to help shrink exposure windows.

Understand the Difference Between Applications and Content

Because many social networking applications utilize a combination of content and application infrastructures, maintaining a secure gateway can be complex and difficult. The most effective way to mitigate the threats that are created by intermingling content with applications is by implementing an effective web application monitoring solution capable of identifying content and applications.

Integrated Real-Time Security Monitoring

The most effective way to prevent malicious attacks via your applications is by integrating a real-time security monitoring system. Because web-based malware evolves just as quickly as user behavior, it’s essential that you have a continuously evolving the security monitoring service capable of securing not only your web applications, but also all content and elements within your website. Hackers are brilliant. The only way to outsmart them is brilliant with a security monitoring system.

How Errors Can Lead to Decreased Visitor Conversions

by EternallyCool.net on July 18, 2022

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According to the latest research, there is a direct relationship between conversion rates and website speed and functionality. While some of these studies primarily revolve around the speed of a website, many also include the functionality of web applications and how their performance directly influences conversion rates. If you’re noticing a steady stream of traffic, but are experiencing a decline or stalling in visitor conversions, perhaps it’s not the functionality of your site, but rather errors in web applications. While there are many reasons why web application errors may result in conversion rate decline, some are more prevalent than others.

Patientce Levels of Users

When an error occurs in a web application, the overall performance and functionality of the app is decreased. Over the past several years, the patience of users has been steadily decreasing. In fact, a study performed in 1999 found that one-third of visitors will abandon a site, even in the middle of purchasing a product/service, if the app takes longer than 8 seconds to download; however, in 2006, the same study found users expect web applications to completely download in less than four seconds. By simulating user behavior using an automation solution like EveryStep’s browser automation solution (which is free), or a paid tool like IEWatch, you can recreate user behavior and test various parts of your application to ensure that there isn’t trouble in areas that might lead to user frustration.

Therefore, to maintain the highest level of visitor retention, and ultimately higher conversion rates, it’s essential that your applications download in less than four seconds. Not striving to meet this goal will result in not only a significant increase in bounce rates, but a simultaneously decrease in conversion rates.

Slow Loading Web Applications

As applications become more advanced so does the strain placed on servers and their response times. While there are many steps you must take to increase the speed and performance of web applications, if any portion of the application takes longer than the aforementioned four second load time, you can expect a significant decrease in conversion rates. In fact, over 40% of online shoppers have stated that if the site and its included web applications don’t match their expected load times, they are likely to not only avoid purchasing from the site, but also avoid visiting the site in the future. It’s essential that every website engage in activities that prevent slow application performance to not only increase conversion rates, but to also safeguard their online reputation. This leads to the next section….

Online Reputation

In the highly competitive online marketplace, your reputation is paramount to current and future success. If you’re searching for ways to maintain a positive experience among all users, which results in a positive reputation, you must strive to prevent application errors. Studies have found that when users experience slow loading applications, they’re not only less-likely to purchase an item from the site, but their likelihood of visiting the site in the future is cut almost in half. Prevent losing customers due to application performance by implementing an effective application monitoring solution capable of monitoring, diagnosing and repairing performance-drowning errors.