Automation decision - Shell scripts or C programs?
I had an interesting conversation with our quality architect for automating a new feature that we are working on. We were discussing the choice of programming language to use. Given the complexity of the Solaris Cluster product, we have automation based on Java, C, Perl and shell scripts.
For some of the BUI/GUI tools, Java is the best choice. For others one could either use shell scripts or C programs. C programs are easier to code for automating kernel level components. But the downside is that any bug in the code causes core dumps and it is difficult for people without knowledge of C programming to decode and find workarounds temporarily and continue with testing. This results in delay till the time the QE identifies a fix/workaround.
On the other hand, scripting is the round about way for kernel level components and takes a lot of time to develop. But debugging it is easy and maintenance is lot more easier.
So what will be your choice? If you have some interesting insights or experience, please leave a comment!
Using C for testing and automation is an overkill and should be ruled out at the first place.
Java or scripting solutions like python or perl will be a good choice, not sure exactly whats ur requirement but in any case its better to look out for application level languages for automation code development.
Posted by Prasanna S on April 14, 2008 at 11:52 AM IST #