In my recent testing efforts, I have comes across a desktop windows form (written in VB6) involving updating a data grid and then calculating another field’s value based on those updates. In order to achieve this functionality, the development staffs implemented two events (AfterColUpdate and LostFocus) that, when triggered, would fire off the calculation method.

None of this is obvious to the end user when testing, all they see is enter a number into the grid column and the total field automatically updates with the sum of all values in the column. Easy peasy.

I created my reusuable action in QuickTest Pro and record the entering of data, which yielded the following code:

VbWindow(”frmMain”).VbWindow(”frmChildWindow1″).VbWindow(”frmChildWindow2″).AcxTable(”PaymentGrid”).SelectCell 1,4

VbWindow(”frmMain”).VbWindow(”frmChildWindow1″).VbWindow(”frmChildWindow2″).AcxTable(”PaymentGrid”).SetCellData 1,4, “30.00″

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Using QTP to Connect to an Oracle Database with Instant Client

by Geoffrey Rodgers
Need a light-weight ODBC connection to an Oracle database for you QTP scripts? Oracle Instant Client is just the ticket, assuming you have Oracle version 10g for your database. Please read the information provided by Oracle to make sure Instant Client is right for your needs.
The Instant Client Driver

I’m not going to rewrite everything provided by Oracle, but I will quickly say (for those of you that did not click on the above link) that Instant Client is a very quick installation and contains less overhead than the full client software that was previously required to connect to an Oracle database using something other than the Microsoft ODBC for Oracle driver.
Instant Client Driver Setup:

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I have been using QuickTest Pro for several years now and have just discovered a simple, but highly useful, feature. In dealing with ActiveX controls, there are many times when the ActiveX add-in for QTP just doesn’t full recognize an application object.

Using the ObjectSpy, you can select the object in question and see all the runtime properties and methods available for the object. For the longest time, I had been using the GetROProperty() method to retrieve the values of the properties. However, I’d not considered how to execute the methods of the objects, as I never needed to do that.

It turns out that you can access the methods, and properties, of the object with this simple code snippet:


VbWindow("frmWindow").ActiveX("testObject").Object.methodName()
VbWindow(”frmWindow”).ActiveX(”testObject”).Object.Property


Happy Testing!

When creating reusable actions in QuickTest Pro, there are times you may come across the need to dynamically access an object within your application that may or may not exist within your Object Repository. One approach to handling this opportunity is through the use of Description Objects.

I could spend a lot of time attempting to explain how to go about implementing description objects, but I have found that QTP’s help files do a good job explaining exactly what you need to do. To find what you are looking for, search for “Using Description Objects for Programmatic Descriptions” within the help file.

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Here is a list of mic* keywords that can be used in QuickTest Pro. I do not have documentation for each of the keywords. I have posted these has a quick reference guide for myself, and others.

These codes will be useful when entering text into textboxes, manipulating datagrids, selecting items for comboboxes and listboxes. Some are useful as constants: micPass, micFail, and micInfo. Most are specific for keys on the keyboard.

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The other day I was diligently creating reusable actions for later use and writing code like nobody’s business. I have had my object repository set up for weeks and haven’t had any issues with it. I have recently upgraded to QTP 9.5 with updated Add-ins for Visual Basic, Web, and .NET.

The application I have been automating is a VB6 desktop client application. Normally, my Object Spy recognizes the main form as frmMain, the VbName property for the action. Well, for whatever reason, QTP just stopped recognizing the VbName properties of all the application objects, choosing such helpful designations as VbWindow and VbButton.

Scouring the internet forums and support sites, I have discovered that this has been a fairly common issue with no distinct resolution. I had tried several remedies and then, in frustration, decided to reinstall the QTP application.

Lo and behold, I had solved the Object Recognition issue. An inelegant solution, but a solution nonetheless.

I’ve found it necessary to create my own code libraries in QuickTest Pro to handle scenarios that aren’t generally covered by the typical QTP or VBScript APIs. This is a useful process for creating reusable functions that are accessible to your entire automation suite. (more…)

The Software Inquisition has an article about the new Object Repository interface in QuickTest Pro 9. Since the company I work is about to migrate to this version of QTP, I figured I would read up on it a bit. This article does a good bit of explaining some new features (and added headaches), so I have a better clue what to look for in a few weeks. (more…)

Today’s tech post is in response to a surprising amount of queries asking how to concatenate strings in QuickTest Pro.

First, it is important to remember that QuickTest Pro scripts are written using VBScript. With that in mind, you can investigate many corners of the internet for sample code and examples of VBScript code. Using the simple Google query returns a host of good resources: VBScript Google Search.

Second, let’s tackle to concatenation issue. In order to concatenate, or add, strings together, you must use the + operator.

‘ Example
Dim strTemp
strTemp = “I am a ” + “little teapot.”
MsgBox(strTemp)
‘ Results: “I am a little teapot.”

This next example takes two variables and concatenates them.

‘ Example
Dim strResults
Dim strTemp1
Dim strTemp2
strTemp1 = “Who let the ”
strTemp2 = “dogs out?”
strResults = strTemp1 + strTemp2
MsgBox(strTemp)
‘ Results: “Who let the dogs out?”

Hopes this tidbit of information helps you out.

Today, I faced a seemingly simple task in QuickTest Pro. I have been toying with creating my own XMLDom object in VBScript to generate custom data report of my test results. After creating the proof of concept I needed, I started implementing my code into my existing script.

My script is broken into 5 actions, each of which perform a certain task. My validation action loops through a data table with hundreds of rows. The way my XMLDom obj is written though, I have to set my variables to a new XMLDom object. Combine this with the fact that variables in QTP Actions are limited in scope to the action they are declared - this posed an issue.

Here’s our initial sample code:

Dim objXMLDoc

Set objXMLDoc = CreateObject(”Microsoft.XMLDOM”)
objXMLDoc.async = False

‘ Write out the new file
objXMLDoc.save(”c:\P1_” & Year(Now) & Month(Now) & Day(Now) & “_” & Hour(Now) & Minute(Now) & “.xml”)

‘ Destroy the objects
set objXMLDoc = Nothing

The simple thought of using a global variable came to mind. That’s when I realized that there are no global variables. So, as the post heading gave away, we started investigating Environment Variables with success.

Here’s our new code:

Environment(”objXMLDoc”) = CreateObject(”Microsoft.XMLDOM”)

Environment(”objXMLDoc”).async = False

‘ Write out the new file
Environment(”objXMLDoc”).save(”c:\P1_” & Year(Now) & Month(Now) & Day(Now) & “_” & Hour(Now) & Minute(Now) & “.xml”)

‘ Destroy the objects
Environment(”objXMLDoc”) = Nothing

What we’ve done is create a makeshift “global” variable that all actions within my script can use. A couple of notes to make though, everywhere that you reference your environment variable must use the Environment(”MyVar”) notation. Also, you cannot use the SET keyword either, otherwise it will result in an error.

Now, we’ve created a variable that can be used across multiple actions and is in scope throughout the course of this test. As always, be sure to clean up your trash afterwards.

Good Luck and Happy coding!