Working with Logic Recorder

ACCELQ's Logic Recorder is an intuitive, revolutionary capability that simplifies the process of automation logic development in Actions and Scenarios. Logic Recorder is at the core of the logic development in Actions and Scenario Workbench, allowing users to easily capture, record, and playback automation simply and efficiently.

This feature combines the convenience of traditional Record & Playback with the added benefit of improved maintainability, addressing one of the core challenges associated with traditional Record & Playback. Creating sustainable automation is easy and intuitive, without the need for programming, or advanced design skills. 

Recorder

The Logic Recorder comprises a native browser embedded in the Scenario Workbench page and Action page which can be used to record statements for automation.

Logic Recorder requires an ACCELQ Local Agent to be running on your desktop. If you don't already have this installed, refer to this article for installation instructions.

Recorder ON

When the Recorder is turned on, the browser enters the hover state, allowing the user to hover over elements on the screen and access options by right-clicking. The context menu presents a list of commands and Actions relevant to the hovered element or page. In the "Actions" tab, all available Actions in the Project are listed, with the most relevant ones for the field or screen highlighted at the top, indicated by a purple dot.

When a command or Action is selected from the context menu, the corresponding statement is automatically added to the logic editor on the left.

Recorder OFF

When the Recorder is turned off, the browser operates in its native state, allowing the user to directly interact and navigate the page. This feature can be useful for situations where manual navigation is necessary to reach a desired initial state, such as setting up the application page in a specific state before starting to record.

It is important to remember to turn the Recorder back on when ready to start recording statements again.

Typing URL in the Recorder

When you enter a URL in the Recorder, the system automatically determines whether or not to record the corresponding statement to invoke the browser. A browser-invoke statement is recorded only when the URL is loaded as part of creating a new Scenario in the Workbench. In all other cases, a notification is displayed, clarifying that the statement was not recorded. If relevant, you can still add this as a statement by clicking on the "Add Statement" link in the notification.

For example, if the URL was entered to start the application page after returning to the Workbench from a previous session, you may not want to record another browser invocation statement. However, if you are entering the URL as part of a multi-application flow in the Scenario, you may want to record the browser invocation as a new statement.

It's important to note that browser-invoke statements will not be recorded when the Recorder is in the OFF state.

Configuring device type

The Logic Recorder feature in ACCELQ allows you to emulate different devices while recording and playing back your automation scripts. By default, the Recorder browser is rendered at a resolution of 1366x768, but you have the option to define your own custom device by providing information on the width, height, device pixel ratio, and user agent string. This allows you to render your web application at different resolutions, emulating different devices. This feature not only allows you to record from a custom-defined device type but also playback on it to verify functionality across different devices.

When creating a new custom device, you can use the standard devices defined in the chrome browser as a starting point, and also copy one of your existing custom-defined devices to create others.

Please note that this feature requires a subscription to the Enterprise edition of ACCELQ. To use this feature, click on the "Devices" icon in the Recorder browser. Here you can define your custom device and make use of it while recording and playing back your automation scripts.

It's worth noting that the custom devices you create and manage in the Recorder Device Emulation will be available as Device options when running or scheduling automation from the Run modal.

Switching between browser tabs and windows

As you record statements or navigate through your application in the Logic Recorder, additional browser tabs or windows may be created, depending on the functionality of the application. To continue recording logic across these tabs, you can switch between them by clicking on the "Browser Instances" icon. When you select one of the tabs to load on the Recorder browser, a corresponding statement will be automatically recorded in the logic editor.

It's important to note that tab switch statements will not be recorded when the Recorder is in the OFF state.

Note about Views

As you record statements in Logic Recorder, ACCELQ records Views necessary for the elements being interacted. These Views help with offline access to the application, in case of a future requirement for incrementally updating the logic in Actions. Learn more about Views.