Validating Dynamic Web Applications

Launching a Dynamic Web Validation

Once you have installed XULRunner as described here, do the following:

  1. Create a new Run Configuration. Select Run Configurations ... either from the Run menu or the Run toolbar icon (as shown below):

  2. Select the Mozilla Accessibility Validation item from the list, right-click, and select New.

  3. A new Mozilla Accessibility Validation Run Configuration page opens and look like this:

  4. Here you have 3 choices for the target of the validation: URL, Local file, or Project File. See the reference section on this run configuration for more details on each choice. Though the best choice to demonstrate this feature is a Web project, the setup of an example for that would be too much to cover, so we will use a simple public webpage instead. Choose the URL option and enter http://www.google.com/maps and give the run configuration a meaningful name.

  5. Select Run. The Mozilla Browser with Accessibility Validation opens and displays the page along with a validation report in the Validation Report View.

    Note: It may take several seconds for the browser to open when the Eclipse environment is first launched and the browser is opened for the first time because the Mozilla Runtime (XULRunner) is being initialized.

    Notice the new report entry in the Report Manager View.

  6. In Google Maps, type in Austin, Tx and click the search button. The map will zoom in and another validation is automatically performed. As you click on links and are brought to new pages, notice that new reports are gathering in the Report Manager View and the corresponding report entries in the Validation Report View.

  7. If your web content uses JavaScript to manipulate the DOM as different components are being manipulated on the page, you may see additional report entries in the Validation Report View. (Additional reports entries will be generated only if one of the two supported event types noted above is executed.)