Phase 1: Functional Testing
Before you create your first performance tests, you want to ensure that all of your application server's required functions are up and running and available, and you want to ensure that the user interface (UI) is behaving as expected.

Start by recording GUI Functional Tests to test the user's experience with the UI in an actual web browser.


Phase 2: Service Virtualization
After verifying your application server is functioning as expected, you're ready to move on to simulating some tests. BlazeMeter's Service Virtualization allow you to test even when you don't have access to a full test environment.

You can run a virtual service to deploy transactions, which are typically a subset of transactions in a particular service. Once a virtual service is created and running, you can associate it with your test, embed it in your test scripts, or provide it during test execution.


Phase 3: Performance Testing
You've verified your application server is functioning as expected, and you've virtualized some tests to get an idea of what deploying transactions against your services will look like. Now it's time to jump into real Performance Testing!

Performance Testing via the BlazeMeter cloud is how you ensure that your application server will be able to handle the full load of users performing various actions all at once as soon as your application goes live. The Performance tab will provide you with a wide range of options for testing, starting with either running a single performance test or a combination of a multiple performance tests executed simultaneously, which we refer to as a Multi-Test.

Cloud testing leverages cloud computing resources and models to enable all aspects of load testing in a highly cost-effective manner. With cloud testing, you have unlimited resources at your disposal. You can perform all Performance Testing activities in the cloud with features such as real-time reporting.


Phase 4: API Monitoring
You've verified that your application is both functioning properly and ready to perform well under load, so going forward, you'll want to keep an ever-watchful eye on your application server so as to avoid any surprise outages in the future.

Downtime can have a far-reaching impact on any business. Without proper visibility into the traffic running through your apps and infrastructure, diagnosing and solving the problem means using up valuable time and resources. BlazeMeter's API Monitoring surfaces issues directly from the internal and third-party APIs that power your apps and infrastructure.

It works by running API monitors -- either from around the globe or from within your infrastructure -- on a continuous schedule to give you visibility into API problems so you can prevent, identify and solve them fast -- before your customers notice.

Social media usage edited
Back in 2005, when social media was still in its infancy, only about 5 percent of users in the United States were involved in social media. In 2019, that number grew to about 70 percent.

Pew Research Center surveyed social media usage and popularity among US adults early in 2019. The survey found that while the most-used social platforms for adults are YouTube and Facebook; teens prefer SnapChat and Instagram, while TikTok is reportedly the fastest growing social network among younger users.
Social media use is nearly universal among today’s teens. Pew Research Center reports 97 percent of 13- to 17-year-olds use at least one of seven major online platforms.
The amount of time spent on social sites is astounding. One report indicates the average teen ages 13 to 18 spends about nine hours on social media each day; tweens ages 8 to 12 are on for about six hours a day.
Like most things, using social media has its positives (the good), its cautionary tales (the bad), and dangers (the ugly) that lurk and impact the lives of many, but especially teens.