Test-driven development

As explained in Django in Action

Test-driven development is a software development approach in which tests are written before the implementation they verify.

Test-driven development (TDD) writes tests before implementation. First decide a function’s interface, then test it, implement it, and finish when its tests pass. section 8.1.1

A practical TDD loop is:

• Choose the function interface. section 8.1.1
• Write tests for the intended behavior. section 8.1.1
• Write the implementation and stop when all tests pass. section 8.1.1

Figure 8.1 Hierarchy of testing categories

Compare unit, integration, behavioral, and UI tests by size, speed, and expected testing frequency. section 8.1.1

How Django in Action covers it

How deep it goes

Defines the test-first loop and completion rule, but does not provide implementation code or detailed testing procedures.

Examples

Uses function interfaces, unit tests, integration tests, behavioral tests, and UI tests as its concrete artifacts.

What you can do after

Apply TDD by writing a function’s tests first and implementing until those tests pass.

How it connects

Connects TDD with automated testing, unit tests, integration tests, behavioral testing, UI testing, and behavior-driven development.

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Compare how 15 books explain test-driven development →

Related concepts

• testuses · A test is a procedure or check that evaluates behavior using specified inputs or evidence against expected results or criteria.
• behavior-driven developmentcontrasts with · Behavior-driven development is a collaborative software practice that specifies and validates expected behavior through human-readable examples meaningful to technical and nontechnical stakeholders.
• integration testuses · An integration test evaluates whether multiple software components, or a component and an external dependency, interact and behave correctly together.
• unit testuses · A unit test is a test that evaluates the behavior of a small, isolated unit of software against expected behavior.
• JUnituses · JUnit is a Java testing framework for defining, organizing, and running automated tests.

This explainer was generated by Manning's knowledge graph from the text of Django in Action. The section links point to the parts of the book it draws on.