PhD Defense: Testing without Scripts – A Smrt Approach to GUI Exploration

02-Apr-2025

On June 19, 2025, from 16:00 to 17:00, Olivia Rodriguez Valdes will defend her PhD thesis, Testing without Scripts: An Approach to Smart GUI Exploration, at the Open Universiteit. This public event marks the milestone of her research into scriptless software testing through graphical user interfaces (GUIs).

As software systems grow increasingly complex and dynamic, traditional script-based testing struggles to keep pace due to high maintenance costs and limited adaptability. Rodriguez Valdes’ thesis explores smarter scriptless GUI testing as a dynamic alternative, leveraging tools like the open-source TESTAR to explore applications without predefined scripts. By introducing smart exploration strategies, this approach uncovers faults often missed by conventional methods.

Her research spans a 30-year review of GUI testing evolution, empirical studies with industry partners in the European IVVES project, and the development a tool extending scriptless testing to mobile platforms. Key contributions include refining state models for better test coverage, integrating reinforcement learning to enhance exploration, and proposing code smell as a novel metric for testing adequacy.

Rodriguez Valdes’ work bridges theory and practice, offering actionable insights for smarter, more adaptable testing in both desktop and mobile environments. The defense is open to all interested attendees.