Protest

Protest is a framework and toolset for writing and running Programmer Tests. There is currently an implementation for Python. At some point I'd like to write an implementation for Java and C# as well.

Why another test framework for Python?

I got frustrated with PyUnit and wanted a simple test framework that felt more "pythonic". So I whipped up just what I needed and built some useful tools around it.

What tools?

Apart from test runners that generate text or HTML reports, Protest includes a documentation generator that creates useful API documentation from well-written programmer tests that follow certain simple naming conventions. Protest generates documentation from the actual code of the programmer tests and from semi-structured docstrings in the test code, rather than from docstrings or comments in production code.

What about Pydoc, Doctest and Epydoc?

Pydoc and Epydoc generate documentation from docstrings in the code under test. Doctest interprets docstrings as tests. The advantages of Protest are:

• Protest documents the features of classes (and functions) in the API, not each method separately. A lot of API documentation does not adequately describe how different functions, methods or objects must be used together. This information is in the tests and Protest therefore includes it in the documentation automatically.

• An examples is worth a thousand reference manuals. Protest documentation includes an example of how to use every feature of the API.
• The production code isn't full of enormous docstrings, so I find it easier to read, to navigate and therefore to maintain.
• My tests already describe what the code does, so documenting it in docstrings is extra work I'd rather not have do.
• Duplicating a specification of the code in both tests and docstrings means I have twice as work to do when I make changes.
• I write my tests before I write the code being tested, so there's nowhere to write a doctest when I need to write it.
• I've found that reading the documentation generated from my programmer tests gives me excellent feedback about how well the test code can be understood as a specification of behaviour, and so helps you improve your tests.

Isn't this just like...?

Yes.

The Protest framework is directly inspired by JUnit and PyUnit. Protest adapts the design to be "pythonic", so that it's more convenient for me to use when I have my Python head on, and more flexible so that test suites can be loaded, composed and decorated in different ways.

The documentation tool is directly inspired by Testdox. Testdox is a bit bare-bones. I wanted a similar tool for Python that generated richer documentation of a similar quality to Javadoc.

How is Protest licensed?

Protest is licensed under the GPL.

Ok, I'm convinced! Where do I get Protest?

Protest is currently under heavy development. You can get the latest version by checking it out of the Subversion repository:

https://svn.sourceforge.net/svnroot/xspecs/protest-python/trunk/