Python Test

Python Test episodes:

• 04.11.2024

  217: Podcasting / SaaS / Work Life Balance - Justin Jackson

  If you've ever thought about starting a podcast or a SaaS project, you'll want to listen to this episode.   Justin is one of the people who motivated me to get started podcasting. He's also running a successful SaaS company, transistor.fm, which...

  
• 03.11.2024

  216: ruff, uv, and Astral: Python tooling, much faster, with Rust

  Charlie Marsh and team are using Rust to make Python tooling faster.Ruff can take the place of Flake8, isort, and Black, and so much more.uv can take the place of pip, pip-tools, and virtualenvAstral is Charlie's venture backed company, and...

  
• 02.25.2024

  215: Staying Technical as a Manager

  Software engineers that move into leadership roles have a struggle between learning leadership skills, maintaining technical skills, and learning new leadership and technical skills.  Matt Makai went from individual contributor to developer relations to leadership in devrel.  We discuss how to stay...

  
• 02.07.2024

  214: Python Testing in VS Code

  If you haven't tried running automated tests, especially with pytest,  in VS Code recently, you should take another look. The Python for VS Code interface for testing, especially for pytest, has changed recently.  On this episode we discuss the change with the...

  
• 01.19.2024

  213: Repeating Tests

  If a test fails in a test suite, I'm going to want to re-run the test. I may even want to re-run a test, or a subset of the suite, a bunch of times.   There are a few pytest plugins...

  
• 01.13.2024

  212: Canon TDD - by Kent Beck

  In 2002, Kent Beck released a book called  "Test Driven Development by Example". In December of 2023, Kent wrote an article called "Canon TDD". With Kent's permission, this episode contains the full content of the article. Brian's commentary is saved for a...

  
• 12.15.2023

  211: Stamp out test dependencies with pytest plugins

  We want to be able to run tests in a suite, and debug them in isolation, and have the behavior be the same.   If the behavior is different in isolation vs in a suite, it's a nightmare to debug.  In...

  
• 11.30.2023

  210: TDD - Refactor while green

  Test Driven Development. Red, Green, Refactor. Do we have to do the refactor part? Does the refactor at the end include tests? Or can I refactor the tests at any time?Why is refactor at the end? This episode is to talk about this with...

  
• 11.16.2023

  209: Testing argparse Applications

  How do you test the argument parsing bit of an application that uses argparse? This episode covers:Design for Test: Structuring your app or script so it's easier to test.pytest & capsys for testing stdoutAdding debug and preview flags for debugging...

  
• 10.30.2023

  208: Tests with no assert statements

  Why on earth would you want to write a test with no assert statements? After all, aren't assert statements how you decide wether a test passes or fails? In this episode, we walk through a handful of useful examples of test...

  
• 09.26.2023

  207: Welcome to "Python Test", pytest course, pytest-repeat and pytest-flakefinder

  Podcast name: "Test & Code" -> "Python Test"Python Bytes PodcastPython People PodcastPython Test Podcast <- you are herewhich is still, at least for now, at testandcode.comNew course: "The Complete pytest Course"pytest-repeat, which I'm starting to contribute toGive `--repeat-scope` a try....

  
• 08.23.2023

  206: TDD in Context

  TDD (Test Driven Development) started from Test First Programming, and has been around at least since the 90's. However, software tools and available CI systems have changed quite a bit since then. Maybe it's time to re-examine the assumptions,...

  
• 08.01.2023

  205: pytest autouse fixtures

  On a recent episode of PythonBytes, I suggested it's hard to come up with good examples for pytest autouse fixtures, as there aren't very many good reasons to use them.  James Falcon was kind enough to reach out and correct...

  
• 07.18.2023

  Free Your Inner Nonfiction Writer

  Learn how to write nonfiction fast and well. Johanna Rothman joins the show to discuss writing nonfiction. Johanna's book: Free Your Inner Nonfiction Writer

  
• 07.17.2023

  Open Source at Intel

  Open Source is important to Intel and has been for a very long time. Joe Curley, vice president and general manager of software products and ecosystem, and Arun Gupta, vice president and general manager for open ecosystems, join the show...

  
• 05.31.2023

  Using Towncrier to Keep a Changelog

  Hynek joins the show to discuss towncrier.  At the top of the towncrier documentation, it says "towncrier is a utility to produce useful, summarized news files (also known as changelogs) for your project." Towncrier is used by "Twisted, pytest, pip,...

  
• 05.25.2023

  Avoid merge conflicts on your CHANGELOG with scriv

  Last week we talked about the importance of keeping a changelog.  This week we talk with Ned Batchelder about scriv, a tool to help maintain that changelog. Scriv "is a command-line tool for helping developers maintain useful changelogs. It manages a...

  
• 05.19.2023

  Keep a CHANGELOG

  A changelog is a file which contains a curated, chronologically ordered list of notable changes for each version of a project.  This episode is about what a changelog is, with an interview with Olivier Lacan, creator of keepachangelog.com. The next two...

  
• 05.04.2023

  Is Azure Right for a Side Project?

  For a web side project to go from "working on desktop" to "live in the cloud", one decision that needs to be made is where to host everything. One option is Microsoft Azure. Lots of corporate sites use it. Is...

  
• 04.27.2023

  Testing Django Web Applications

  Django has some built in ways to test your application. There's also pytest-django and other plugins that help with testing. Carlton Gibson and Will Vincent from the Django Chat Podcast join the show to discuss how to get started testing...

  
• 04.05.2023

  Python project trove classifiers - Do you need this bit of pyproject.toml metadata?

  Classifiers are one bit of Python project metadata that predates PyPI.  Classifiers are weird.  They were around in setuptools days, and are still here with pyproject.toml. What are they? Why do we need them? Do we need them?Which classifiers should I include?Why are...

  
• 03.31.2023

  I am not a supplier

  Should we think of open source components the same way we think of physical parts for manufactured goods?  There are problems with supply chain analogy when applied to software.  Thomas Depierre discusses some of those issues in this episode.  ...

  
• 03.08.2023

  What would you change about pytest?

  Anthony Sottile and Brian discuss changes that would be cool for pytest, even unrealistic changes. These are changes we'd make to pytest if we didn't ahve to care about backwards compatibilty. Anthony's list:The import systemMulti-process support out of the boxAsync...

  
• 03.05.2023

  Test & Code Returns

  A brief discussion of why Test & Code has been off the air for a bit, and what to expect in upcoming episodes. Links:Python Testing with pytest, 2nd EditionGetting started with pytest Online CourseSoftware Testing with pytest TrainingPython Bytes Podcast

  
• 08.30.2022

  The Good Research Code Handbook - Patrick Mineault

  I don't think it's too much of a stretch to say that software is part of most scientific research now.  From astronomy, to neuroscience, to chemistry, to climate models.   If you work in research that hasn't been affected by software yet, just...

  
• 08.06.2022

  Learn to code through game development with PursuedPyBear - Piper Thunstrom

  The first game I remember coding, or at least copying from a magazine, was in Basic. It was Lunar Lander.  Learning to code a game is a way that a lot of people get started and excited about programming.  Of...

  
• 07.01.2022

  Running your own site for fun and absolutely no profit whatsoever - Brian Wisti

  Having a personal site is a great playground for learning tons of skills. Brian Wisti discusses the benefits of running a his own blog over the years. Links:Random GeekeryJamstackEleventyNetlifyPlausible AnalyticspytestBeautiful Souppyinvoke - Invoke!rsyncInternet Archive : archive.orgRichStatamicjamstack.orgA static site generator...

  
• 06.21.2022

  Testing PyPy - Carl Friedrich Bolz-Tereick

  PyPy is a fast, compliant alternative implementation of Python.  cPython is implemented in C.  PyPy is implemented in Python.  What does that mean?  And how do you test something as huge as an alternative implementation of Python? Special Guest: Carl Friedrich Bolz-Tereick....

  
• 06.07.2022

  attrs and dataclasses - Hynek Schlawack

  In Python, before dataclasses, we had attrs.  Before attrs, it wasn't pretty. The story of attrs and dataclasses is actually intertwined.   They've built on each other.  And in the middle of it all, Hynek. Hynek joins the show today to discuss some history...

  
• 05.17.2022

  Python's Rich, Textual, and Textualize - Innovating the CLI

  Will McGugan has brought a lot of color to CLIs within Python due to Rich.   Then Textual started rethinking full command line applications, including layout with CSS.  And now Textualize, a new startup, is bringing CLI apps to the web. ...

  
• 05.13.2022

  Teaching Web Development, including Front End Testing

  When you are teaching someone web development skills, when is the right time to start teaching code quality and testing practices? Karl Stolley believes it's never too early. Let's hear how he incorporates code quality in his courses. Our discussion...

  
• 05.12.2022

  Developer and Team Productivity

  Being productive is obviously a good thing.  Can we measure it?  Should we measure it?  There's been failed attempts, like lines of code, etc. in the past.  Currently, there are new tools to measure productivity, like using git metrics. Nick Hodges joins the show...

  
• 05.11.2022

  Python + Django + Rich + Testing == Awesome

  Django has a handful of console commands to help manage and develop sites.  django-rich adds color and nice formatting. Super cool. In a recent release, django-rich also adds nice colorized tracebacks to the Django test runner.  Links:django-rich · PyPIepisode...

  
• 03.21.2022

  Twisted and Testing Event Driven / Asynchronous Applications - Glyph

  Twisted has been supporting asynchronous / event driven applications way before asyncio. Twisted, and Glyph, have also been encouraging automated tests for a very long time. Twisted uses a technique that should be usable by other applications, even those using...

  
• 03.17.2022

  Managing Software Teams - Ryan Cheley

  Ryan Cheley joins me today to talk about some challenges of managing software teams, and how to handle them.  We end up talking about a lot of skills that are excellent for software engineers as well as managers. Some topics discussed:handling...

  
• 03.08.2022

  An Unorthodox Technical Interview and Hiring Process - Nathan Aschbacher

  Don't you just love technical interviews, with someone who just saw your resume or CV 5 minutes ago asking you to write some code on a whiteboard. Probably code that has nothing to do with anything you've done before or...

  
• 03.01.2022

  Boost Your Django DX - Adam Johnson

  We talk with Adam Johnson about his new book, "Boost Your Django DX".  Developer experience includes tools and practices to make developers more effective and efficient, and just plain make software development more fun and satisfying.   One of the things I...

  
• 02.21.2022

  Lean TDD

  Lean TDD is an attempt to reconcile some conflicting aspects of Test Driven Development and Lean Software Development. I've mentioned Lean TDD on the podcast a few times and even tried to do a quick outline at the end of...

  
• 02.09.2022

  Exploratory Testing

  Exploratory testing is absolutely an essential part of a testing strategy.  This episode discusses what exploratory testing is, its benefits, and how it fits within a framework of relying on automated tests for most of our testing. Full Transcript

  
• 01.31.2022

  The Five Factors of Automated Software Testing

  "There are five practical reasons that we write tests. Whether we realize it or not, our personal testing philosophy is based on how we judge the relative importance of these reasons." - Sarah Mei This episode discusses the factors. Sarah's...

  
• 01.28.2022

  Unit Test vs Integration Test and The Testing Trophy

  A recent Twitter thread by Simon Willison reminded me that I've been meaning to do an episode on the testing trophy.  This discussion is about the distinction between unit and integration tests, what those terms mean, and where we should spend...

  
• 01.18.2022

  SaaS Side Projects

  The idea of having a software as a service product sound great, doesn't it?  Solve a problem with software. Have a nice looking landing page and website. Get paying customers.  Eventually have it make enough revenue so you can turn...

  
• 01.12.2022

  Who Should Do QA?

  Who should do QA?How does that change with different projects and teams?What does "doing QA" mean, anyway?Answering these questions are the goals of this episode. Full Transcript Links:Test Automation - Who Should be Involved? | Thoughtworks

  
• 12.22.2021

  pseudo-TDD - Paul Ganssle

  In this episode, I talk with Paul Ganssle about a fun workflow that he calls pseudo-TDD.  Pseudo-TDD is a way to keep your commit history clean and your tests passing with each commit.  This workflow includes using pytest xfail and some semi-advanced...

  
• 12.17.2021

  Why NOT unittest?

  In the preface of "Python Testing with pytest" I list some reasons to use pytest, under a section called "why pytest?". Someone asked me recently, a different but related question "why NOT unittest?". unittest is an xUnit style framework. For...

  
• 11.30.2021

  Designing Better Software with a Prototype Mindset

  A prototype is a a preliminary model of something, from which other forms are developed or copied.  In software, we think of prototypes as early things, or a proof of concept.  We don't often think of prototyping during daily software development or...

  
• 11.22.2021

  How and why I use pytest's xfail - Paul Ganssle

  Paul Ganssle, is a software developer at Google, core Python dev, and open source maintainer for many projects, has some thoughts about pytest's xfail.  He was an early skeptic of using xfail, and is now an proponent of the feature.  In this...

  
• 11.18.2021

  pytest for Data Science and Machine Learning - Prayson Daniel

  Prayson Daniel, a principle data scientist, discusses testing machine learning pipelines with pytest. Prayson is using pytest for some pretty cool stuff, including:unit tests, of coursetesting pipeline stagescounterfactual testingperformance testingAll with pytest. So cool. Full Transcript Special Guest: Prayson Daniel....

  
• 11.11.2021

  Service and Microservice Performance Monitoring - Omri Sass

  Performance monitoring and error detection is just as important with services and microservices as with any system, but with added complexity. Omri Sass joins the show to explain telemetry and monitoring of services and of systems with services.  Full Transcript...

  
• 11.02.2021

  Understanding Complex Code by Refactoring into Larger Functions

  To understand complex code, it can be helpful to remove abstractions, even if it results in larger functions. This episode walks through a process I use to refactor code that I need to debug and fix, but don't completely understand....