Understanding App Activity in Appium

Android

To understand what App Activity means in the Appium-Android connection, it is important to become familiar with the basic working mechanism of an Android app.

1. Between a user first launching an app and then switching to a different one, the app goes through different stages which collectively form The Android App Lifecycle.
2. When the user first interacts with an app, they are presented with an initial screen.
3. This screen is what is known as an Activity.
4. Think of it as what a window is to a desktop app on the Windows platform.

The Appium Connection

A typical Android app consists of multiple activities that represent the different screens it has. Just like a journey, the UI Automation process must start somewhere. This is where the App Activity comes into play.

1. To begin the UI Automation process, Appium needs to know the starting point of the process, that is where it should begin its UI Testing process.
2. When configuring the Appium Test Script, the developer typically configures the Appium server and provides the criteria used to run the Automation Script.

Appium is integral to UI Automation within different domains in Tech: Mobile, Web, and even Desktop. The platform aims to streamline Software Testing through the following goals as outlined by its creators:

1. Make platform-specific automation capabilities available under a cross-platform, standard API.
2. Allow easy access to this API from any programming language.
3. Provide tools to enable convenient community development of Appium extensions.

Appium is a suitable choice for Mobile Developers who want to benefit from the automation of UI Testing due to its ease of use and versatility. This article seeks to define what App Activity is in the context of Appium and Android.