[dtp-dev] Re: Unit tests for Callisto: help wanted

[jograham@xxxxxxxxxx]

Some clarification based on questions about this email:

(1) The volunteer sought will be a coordinator, to make sure that goals 1
and 2 below are met. Each plug-in owner will be responsible for writing the
specific tests, so we are really talking about setting up some
infrastructure and policies for testing.

(2) Yes, this is required. By Eclipse rules, components wishing to call
themselves "frameworks" must have comprehensive client-side unit tests
(among other things). Other components without unit tests will be
criticized by the community, and rightly so.

(3) Yes, this is a requirement for moving to "1.0" and hence out of
incubation. Without it, we'll go to 0.9 then 0.99 and then 0.999, etc. At
some point, the community will stop caring about adopting and using DTP.

So, any takers?

Regards,
John Graham
Eclipse Data Tools Platform PMC Chair
Staff Software Engineer, Sybase, Inc.
http://dataplat.blogspot.com/



                                                                           
             John                                                          
             Graham/SYBASE                                                 
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                                       Unit tests for Callisto: help       
                                       wanted                              
                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           



Unit tests are an important part of eclipse.org deliverables. They provide
rapid and repeatable ways to test code being changed, and give the adopter
community a sense of code coverage and completeness. Currently there are
very few unit tests in DTP. In order to be considered a "mature" project
(that is, graduate from the incubation state we currently are in),
comprehensive unit tests will be expected. The PMC hopes to make
substantial progress toward this goal in DTP Callisto. Specifically we
would like:

1. Unit tests for all plug-ins, to be housed outside the plug-ins
themselves
2. A way to run these unit tests as a whole after a build or at any time
during development

Writing good unit tests, especially those that range across components in a
consistent way and don't require odious dependencies (such as specific
databases or other servers present), is a skill like any other in software
engineering. Fortunately, there are a number of good online tutorials and
book in print about unit testing and JUnit in particular.

In order for DTP to meet this goal, I am asking for a volunteer to
coordinate unit test development. This person ideally would have solid
experience with JUnit, and would coordinate with each component owner to
insure that the goals 1--2 above are met (in addition to more goals defined
in the process). Clearly this is a lot of work, but it is necessary for
moving DTP forward.

 Any takers?

Regards,
John Graham
Eclipse Data Tools Platform PMC Chair
Staff Software Engineer, Sybase, Inc.
http://dataplat.blogspot.com/