Poll: Do you test your code? • Hacker News Board

Re: Poll: Do you test your code?

#81

Post by tomjen3 » Wed, Mar 14, 2012, 4:18 PM UTC

I don't have a problem with the idea of test, as such, but I couldn't use them since I write webapps and what gives us issues isn't the Javascript code (about 80%) of the time.

It is the CSS, or failing that, the interaction between Javascript and CSS, which I haven't seen any way to test automatically (such test would be able to answer 'given this code, does the resulting DOM look like picture $N').

Usually when there is something wrong with the Javascript it blows up in our faces.

So if anybody knows of a testing framework that can do this, please tell me about it.

Re: Poll: Do you test your code?

#82

Post by d-roo » Wed, Mar 14, 2012, 4:18 PM UTC

I was in the 'testing is too much overhead' crowd for years until one day I finally got it. I realized that as I code, I'm always testing. Who doesn't make a change and then test it? So, you consider writing a test too much overhead? How much overhead is it to manually test? How much overhead is it to fill out that registration form you're testing? Maybe there are two or three steps to it. How much time does that take each and every time you test? Being one that enjoys automating repetitive tasks, writing that test _once_ suddenly became a no-brainer.

This realization only made all the other arguments for testing that much stronger.

Re: Poll: Do you test your code?

#83

Post by fudged » Wed, Mar 14, 2012, 4:26 PM UTC

bemmu wrote: post #52

I don't test as much as I probably should, because it seems cumbersome since I am mostly dealing with APIs like Facebook. For example, if a user revokes their Facebook OAuth app token they get an email notification about that from me, informing them that the app will no longer be able to function because of the expired token. I am not automatically testing that, perhaps I am missing something, but automating the step…

Manual testing has it's value as well. Automated testing isn't always cost-effective or simple.

Re: Poll: Do you test your code?

#84

Post by Someone » Wed, Mar 14, 2012, 4:27 PM UTC

amouat wrote: post #77

stephencanon wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100% branch and statement coverage doesn't begin to cover "all". Consider: double sin(double x) { return x; } Simply testing x = 0 gives you 100% branch and statement coverage, but I don't think you want to ship just yet =)

That's not entirely fair - you haven't tested the branches or statements inside the sin function. However, even if the sin function is already tested elsewhere, you will still need further testing to ensure that you are calling it correctly (e.g. not confusing degrees and radians). EDIT: Yes, I read it wrong - clearly need coffee...

The original poster gave an implementation of sin(), not a unit test. That implementation has no branches in the source and, for any decent compiler, will not have any branches on the machine, either.

Re: Poll: Do you test your code?

#85

Post by wpietri » Wed, Mar 14, 2012, 4:27 PM UTC

amouat wrote: post #77

stephencanon wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100% branch and statement coverage doesn't begin to cover "all". Consider: double sin(double x) { return x; } Simply testing x = 0 gives you 100% branch and statement coverage, but I don't think you want to ship just yet =)

That's not entirely fair - you haven't tested the branches or statements inside the sin function. However, even if the sin function is already tested elsewhere, you will still need further testing to ensure that you are calling it correctly (e.g. not confusing degrees and radians). EDIT: Yes, I read it wrong - clearly need coffee...

Perhaps you need to read it a little more closely? For the given function, he has indeed tested all the branches and statements.

Re: Poll: Do you test your code?

#86

Post by fudged » Wed, Mar 14, 2012, 4:28 PM UTC

Being in a software testing class right now, I'm absolutely shocked how many "minimal/no testing" responses and comments there are.

Re: Poll: Do you test your code?

#87

Post by densh » Wed, Mar 14, 2012, 4:30 PM UTC

tel wrote: post #64

I work in science. We agree that testing would be beneficial, but nobody codes well enough to actually get it done. To all language designers, there is a HUGE space for a better scientific language. Make it easy for Matlab users to understand, but include better encapsulation and library support. Tie in testing and proving from the core.

You might want to check out Julia[1] programming language. I have absolutely no idea how good or bad is it but considering the fact that it's so young -- you are still able to influence it's development (e.g. suggest better testing capabilities) if you really wanted to.

[1] http://julialang.org/