Besides new features like Word reporting or domain filtering, the latest release of Silk Performer (version 16.5) also includes a bunch of enhancements for TrueLog Explorer. One of these innovations is the possibility to create sections in your TrueLog, which helps you to maintain a well-structured TrueLog tree. Based on an example, we will take a look at how to insert TrueLog sections during recording and how to save a screenshot for each section. On top of that, we will create a custom node in the TrueLog tree, using the new BDL function TrueLogInfo() . Why TrueLog sections are useful When you are used to working with TrueLog files, you're probably a little confused from time to time. Big and comprehensive TrueLog files can have huge trees with a myriad of nodes and levels. Exploring a TrueLog often means to click through many of these nodes until you finally find the data you were looking for. TrueLog sections make it easier to stay on top of things. But why are those TrueLog trees so complex in the first place? When you record, for example, a web application, you might think that one user interaction, like clicking a button, leads to one node in the TrueLog tree. Unfortunately, this is not true for many modern web applications. If anything, one user interaction is usually reflected by a bunch of nodes. But when you create a TrueLog section right before you execute the click, all the actions that are triggered by that click will be combined under the section. The image above illustrates the idea behind TrueLog sections. How to insert TrueLog sections Let's see how this works in the context of an example. I'm going to record a quick session in Silk Central for this demonstration. Silk Central is a modern web application. When you click a button in Silk Central, there are usually a lot of actions triggered and processed in the background. I enter the URL on the Model Script dialog and start the recording. The browser pops up, showing the Silk Central login screen. Before I perform a click, I create my first TrueLog section right away. On the Silk Performer Recorder , I click Insert TrueLog Section . I name the section Login and make sure that Store screenshot is enabled. Note that the name of my sections will always reflect what I will do or click next. So my first user interaction is to login to Silk Central. The Silk Central dashboard displays. Again, I click Insert TrueLog Section on the Recorder and enter Execution Planning , because that will be my next action. Again, leave Store screenshot enabled and click OK . There are two more sections I'm creating the same way: Tracking , and Logout . When I'm done, I close the browser, stop the recording, and save the script. Viewing the sections in the TrueLog The next step is to execute a Try Script run to let Silk Performer generate our first TrueLog file. So click Try Script on the workflow bar, make sure Animated run with TrueLog Explorer and Enable think times are both disabled, and click Run . When the run is completed, the Try Script Summary Page displays. In the Next Steps area on the right side, click Explore TrueLog file . TrueLog Explorer opens. Now drill down in the tree until you see your TrueLog sections. The tree in my example shows the sections I've created. When I expand the first section, we can see that the Login action is reflected by 10 nodes. Now we have all these nodes combined in one TrueLog section with a meaningful name. Our tree is clean and tidy. When you click one of the sections, you can see the screenshot that was captured during recording. This makes it even easier to find your way in a comprehensive TrueLog. The TrueLogInfo() function Now I will show you how to add a custom node at any desired position in your TrueLog tree. Such custom nodes are especially useful for debugging purposes. Let's switch from TrueLog Explorer to the Silk Performer Workbench and open the script that was generated during recording. Go to the position in the script where you want to insert the node. I will insert mine right after the TrueLog Section Tracking . I'm scripting the new BDL function TrueLogInfo() - t he first parameter is the content of the node (it is optional), the second parameter is the name of the node. Viewing the custom node in the TrueLog Again, we have to execute a Try Script run to generate a new TrueLog. So, I click Try Script on the Workflow bar and start the execution by clicking Run . When the run is completed, I click Explore TrueLog file on the Try Script Summary page. TrueLog Exlplorer opens, showing the newly created TrueLog. When I drill down to the Tracking section, I can see the new custom node. Conclusion You might want to try out the new TrueLog sections next time you record a script. Just click Insert TrueLog Section on the Silk Performer Recorder and give the section a name. Later, you can view the sections in your TrueLog. Take a moment to think about the sections you want to create. Remember, that you have to create the section before you start performing the actual actions. And maybe you want to try out the new TrueLogInfo() function as well. Watch the TrueLog Sections video The following video explains the idea behind TrueLog sections and shows the above described process: (Please visit the site to view this video) More information To learn more about all new features and enhancements Silk Performer 16.5 provides, take a look at the following blog posts: Released: Silk Performer 16.5 Word Reporting Domain Filtering In the Silk Performer documentation, you can also find detailed information about all new features: What's New in Silk Performer 16.5
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