Enhancements To Manual Test Reassignment & History

Hey everyone! Let's dive into some cool improvements regarding how manually run tests are reassigned, especially focusing on the Tester Assignment History. This is all about making things smoother and more accessible for everyone involved. @ccanash and @howard-e have been doing awesome work on this, and it's looking great in staging!

Addressing Accessibility Debt in Tester Assignment History

So, the main point here is ensuring that our app is top-notch when it comes to accessibility. There's this little issue spotted by @mcking65 concerning the Tester Assignment History when a test plan run gets reassigned multiple times. Currently, the history spits out multiple spans, which, for someone using a screen reader, mashes all the assignments into one long, confusing string. Imagine hearing something like:

This run was reassigned from 'mcking65' to 'ChrisC' on 20 Oct 2025 15:54Performed by: mcking65This run was reassigned from 'LouisDo10' to 'mcking65' on 20 Oct 2025 15:49Performed by: mcking65

Not very helpful, right? The goal is to make each assignment a separate, clear list item. This way, screen reader users can easily understand the reassignment history. The suggestion is to format it like this:

• This run was reassigned from 'mcking65' to 'ChrisC' on 20 Oct 2025 15:54. Performed by: mcking65
• This run was reassigned from 'LouisDo10' to 'mcking65' on 20 Oct 2025 15:49. Performed by: mcking65

Importance of List Semantics and Phrase Separation

List semantics are crucial for screen readers because they provide structure and context. When content is properly marked up as a list, screen readers can announce the number of items, allow users to navigate between items, and generally make the content more understandable. Without proper list semantics, screen reader users have to guess at the structure, which can be frustrating and time-consuming. Phrase separation is equally important. Clear separation between phrases, achieved through punctuation and formatting, helps screen reader users to understand the individual pieces of information and how they relate to each other. In this case, separating each reassignment event into its own list item and adding a period after the timestamp makes the information much easier to parse.

Simplifying the Tester Assignment History

To take it a step further, there's a suggestion to simplify the wording a bit. Instead of saying "Performed by:", we could just use "by" and put single quotes around the person's ID. This would make the history even cleaner and easier to read:

• This run was reassigned from 'mcking65' to 'ChrisC' on 20 Oct 2025 15:54 by 'mcking65'.
• This run was reassigned from 'LouisDo10' to 'mcking65' on 20 Oct 2025 15:49 by 'mcking65'.

This might seem like a small change, but it can make a big difference in terms of clarity and accessibility. It's all about making the information as digestible as possible for everyone.

Benefits of Addressing This Issue

Addressing this issue provides numerous benefits that extend beyond just accessibility. First and foremost, it improves the user experience for individuals who rely on screen readers. By providing a clear and structured history of tester assignments, these users can easily understand who was responsible for the test at different points in time, which can be crucial for troubleshooting and understanding test results. Secondly, it reduces cognitive load for all users. A well-formatted and easy-to-understand history of assignments can help testers, developers, and managers quickly grasp the context of a test run, saving them time and effort. This, in turn, can lead to increased efficiency and productivity. Finally, addressing this issue demonstrates a commitment to inclusive design. By making the application more accessible, the development team is signaling that they value the needs of all users, regardless of their abilities. This can enhance the reputation of the application and the organization behind it.

Implementation Considerations

When implementing these changes, there are several factors to consider. First, the development team needs to ensure that the list semantics are properly implemented using HTML list elements (<ul>, <ol>, and <li>). This ensures that screen readers can correctly interpret the structure of the history. Secondly, the team needs to pay attention to the formatting of the dates and times. Consistent formatting makes the history easier to read and understand. Finally, the team should consider providing a way for users to filter or sort the history. For example, users might want to see only the assignments for a particular tester or for a particular date range. This would make it easier for them to find the information they need.

Prioritizing the Fix

Now, the question is whether to tackle this issue before shipping or create a separate issue to address later. Since multiple assignments aren't super common, and the content is still understandable, it's not a showstopper. However, fixing it now would prevent accumulating accessibility debt. So, it boils down to weighing the effort required against the capacity of the team.

In Conclusion: This enhancement focuses on delivering a better experience for all users, especially those relying on screen readers, by ensuring our tester assignment history is clear, concise, and easily navigable. Keep up the great work, team!