Table of contents
1.
Introduction 
2.
What is Katalon Studio
2.1.
Key Features of Katalon Studio
3.
Locators and Object Identification
3.1.
Locators and Objects 
4.
Frequently Asked Questions 
4.1.
Which is better among Katalon Studio and Selenium based Frameworks. 
4.2.
Is Katalon challenging to comprehend?
4.3.
Is Katalon suitable for API testing?
4.4.
Why Katalon? 
5.
Conclusion
Last Updated: Mar 27, 2024

Locators and Object Identification in Katalon studio

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Introduction 

The process of evaluating and verifying that a software product or application does is known as Software testing. Every product or software needs to go through all phases of testing before launching in order to prevent future glitches and bugs. But, testing, again and again, wastes the time and effort. To overcome this, one can make use of automation testing tools. 

This article discusses automation mobile application Testing through Katalon studio. It majorly focuses on Locators and Object Identification. 

katalon

What is Katalon Studio

Katalon Studio is a comprehensive tool for automating web and mobile app testing. 

This tool offers a variety of powerful features that help in overcoming common challenges in web UI test automation, such as pop-up, iFrame, and wait time. 

This user-friendly and adaptable solution supports testers in testing better, working faster, and releasing high-quality software.

Key Features of Katalon Studio

key features of katalon

Simple deployment: First, It is a single cohesive deployment package that includes everything you need to deploy a powerful test automation tool.

Setup is quick and simple: Second, not only does it provide a simple installation, but Katalon Studio also makes it simple to configure the environment. Using its pre-built templates and test scripts, such as object repositories and keyword libraries, testers can quickly execute their first test script.

Better and Faster Results: Third, it includes built-in templates with clear tutorials to help testers in quickly create and run automation test scripts. As a result, they can complete every step of the project setup, test creation, execution, report generation, and maintenance with speed and efficiency.

Modes that are adaptable: Fourth, novice testers can use recording and keywords to create automation tests, whereas expert testers have a full IDE to build advanced scripts.

Now, that we’ve gone through the brief description of Katalon studio along with its features, it’s time to discuss our today’s main agenda, i.e., Locators and Object Identification in Katalon studio

Locators and Object Identification

Locators and Object Identification

In order to get started with Locators and Object Identification in Katalon studio, let us first understand what are locators and Objects.

Locators and Objects 

Everyone is aware that certain actions must be taken in order to test a mobile application (such as click, type, etc.). Now that we are automating those applications, the automation tool should be able to carry out the same tasks that a person can. 

The question that now arises is: How do these automation tools select which OBJECT they need to perform a specific operation on? The answer to this is Locators

So, Locator is nothing but a command. By using the Locator command, Katalon Studio is informed which GUI elements (such as Text Boxes, Buttons, Check Boxes, etc.) it should operate on. 

Using locators we can identify mobile objects on a mobile application. And this process is known as Object Identification

Now, you must be wondering, how this automation happens. With the use of the Locator Strategy, objects can be easily identified.
 

So, What are Locator Strategies? 

locator strategy

Due to a large number of UI elements on a single mobile application screen, it is possible for the same (generic)address to refer to more than one element. This means that we have to give the element a special address. You'll see that sometimes it's simple to do this and other times you need to do more research to pinpoint your UI element specifically. The way in which you uniquely identify the element is called a locator strategy.

Katalon Studio supports below location strategies to identify objects: 

Locator

Description

accessibility-id Locates elements whose ID attribute matches the search value
class name Locates elements whose class name contains the search value 
ID Locates the native element
name Locates elements whose NAME attribute matches the search value
XPath Locates elements matching an XPath expression
Image Locate an object by matching its image with a Base64 file
Android UiAutomator This locator strategy is specific to the Android Platform.
Android View Tag Locates an element using its view tag.

Let us now see how we can apply this locator strategy to identify our object. 

Object Creation 
Let us start with an Object creation manually: 

By performing right-clicking on the Object Repository and choosing New > Mobile Object, you can create an object there.

object creation

CREDIT: www.katalon.com

Choose a locator strategy from the options offered, then enter a locator.

properties of object

CREDIT: www.katalon.com

You can also add Object properties like class, name, CSS selector, XPath, title, and so on to your object. 

Let us now see each strategy in detail: 

Accessibility ID: Read a unique identifier for a UI element. It is the element's accessibility-id attribute for XCUITest. It is the element's content-desc attribute for Android.

ID
CREDIT: www.katalon.com

Class Name: For IOS, It begins with XCUIElementType and is the full name of the XCUI element. It is the full name of the UIAutomator2 class for Android (e.g.: android.widget.TextView).


class name

CREDIT: www.katalon.com

ID: Native element identifier. resource-id for android; name for iOS.


ID

CREDIT: www.katalon.com
 

Name: Name of the element.

name

CREDIT: www.katalon.com

XPath: search the app's XML source (not recommended, has performance issues).
 

properties of object

CREDIT: www.katalon.com

Frequently Asked Questions 

Which is better among Katalon Studio and Selenium based Frameworks. 

Katalon Studio hides all the technical complexities. It offers a user-friendly UI in manual mode (users can drag-drop, select keywords, and create test steps using test objects). It also keeps the essential tools for more technical users. With Selenium, users have to go through technical guidelines for their API and integrate them into with an IDE and a preferred programming language.

Is Katalon challenging to comprehend?

Katalon Studio is a straightforward automation testing tool that does not require advanced programming skills to write automated tests. It also includes a scripting mode for more advanced users and test cases.

Is Katalon suitable for API testing?

Yes, It supports various types of testing, including API, Web UI, and mobile. It is cross-platform and works with a variety of mobile devices. It is compatible with the majority of popular operating systems and browsers.

Why Katalon? 

Due to its various features such as Business Results, Speed, Scalability & Flexibility, Visibility, AI and innovation, ROI and affordability, and so forth, katalon is the best choice for automation testing. 

Conclusion

To conclude the discussion, we’ve discussed Locators and Object Identification in Katalon Studio and its key features. We’ve explored Locators and locator strategies to identify the objects. We’ve also looked at object creation along with adding various object properties. 

It’s time for you to play around with the objects and do some amazing stuff. Till that time, you can have a look at our other amazing articles on Katalon Studio. 

What is Data Driven Testing in Katalon Studio? 

What are the Selection Methods for Web Tests in Katalon?

I hope you would have gained a better understanding of these topics now!

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