A free test tool a day - Rapid Reporter

Rapid Reporter

This is a tool I use very often the last few years to help me logging my Exploratory testing sessions. I love this  tool because it is very simple and effective. And also because you don't have to install it. 

What does it do?

With this tool you enter one text lines in a small Window that is placed somewhere on your screen, you can drag it anywhere. The text you enter is placed in an Comma Separated Value file, so you can read what you tested after you've finished. It has a time clock for 90 minutes (default setting, I never changed this), so you can time box your exploratory session. And that's it. A test log is created on your disk, so you won't be bothered to switch to notepad, excel or something else you are using. 

If you never create test logs for your ET it is a great tool to start doing that, because of the easy way to do it. I use it to create checklists afterwards, us it as a reproducing report for bugs to give to developers, and for future reference. What did I do the last few days? In my current project I will use the logs as input for developers to create automated test scripts.

How does it look?

When it's started, it is a very small Window with a few buttons and one field to enter notes.

• There is a button for creating a screenshot on the left (for example, to capture the moment)
• There is also a button where you can enter specific notes for the complete test session you are doing
• There is a slider on the left where you can set transparency of the app, so it will not attract attention too much when your are concentrating on the software you are testing.
• The blue bar is a progress bar for the timer of 90 minutes and will fil the edit box. After 90 minutes you still can continue and it will not make you stop.
• With the arrow keys [up] and [down], you can select a specific log type. The picture says "Test:". With the arrow [up] key it goes to "notes", with the arrow [down] key it goes to "Check:"
• There is also "Bug" for example, this bug: option will show red in a HTML file you can create of the logfile.

How do I start?

Just go to the website where you can download the tool and read the instruction manual. It is very simple and easy to use it. http://testing.gershon.info/reporter/