Robot framework is an automation framework for test driven development and robotic process automation1.
It's uses range from e2e testing using Appium2 and Selenium3 to driving CNC mills4.
Log your way to success#
The biggest selling point of Robot Framework is the logs and reports it produces.
Robotframeworks example log file#
They can be easily integrated into your CI build, see this example Jenkinsfile for its use in a pipeline Jenkins Pipeline Support Example.
They are also extensible, see this POC example of how SVG and HTML can be embedded in a log Robot Framework Graphing POC
But why should you switch?#
Surely no one should be learning another DSL in 2019 that's so much abstraction?
Abstraction that's the key word there.
This abstraction can allow for a single test to target multiple platforms.
In theory the following test case for an email client could be run on several different browsers on several different operating systems.
Even for both Android and iOS applications by simply switching Library.
Email client example using Gherkin Syntax#
When the investment is put into automation testing everyone benefits.
These UI tests can be used for e2e and integration testing and can be part of Test Driven Development beyond just writing unit tests.
If employed by both UI and backend developers the maintenance costs of this kind of testing falls dramatically.
Robot framework has been around for a long time now and has a great thriving community around it.
Try it out.