JSpec
testing
We recently posted a unit test roundup, so I noticed that JSpec has been updated to version 3. This version introduces several interesting updates (see the full change list):
- Rhino’s jar is included so console tests can work without installing extra stuff
- Added a
jspec statscommand - Subcommand hooks — checks for spec/commands/*_command.rb
- Ruby server is now a Sinatra app
JSpec is now version 3.0 and currently has over 200 followers on GitHub, so it’s worth checking out.
Syntax Examples
JSpec tests can be written using a custom DSL or a grammar-less JavaScript syntax. When using the DSL in browser-based tests, be sure to use JSpec.exec() to run tests rather than including the code in script tags (more details are in the README).
Tests written with the DSL look like this:
describe 'ShoppingCart'
before_each
cart = new ShoppingCart
end
describe 'addProducts'
it 'should add several products'
cart.addProduct('cookie')
cart.addProduct('icecream')
cart.should.have 2, 'products'
end
end
describe 'checkout'
it 'should throw an error when checking out with no products'
-{ cart.clear().checkout() }.should.throw_error EmptyCart
end
end
end
JavaScript equivalent:
JSpec.describe('ShoppingCart', function(){
before_each(function{
cart = new ShoppingCart
})
describe('addProducts', function(){
it ('should add several products', function(){
cart.addProducts('cookie')
cart.addProducts('icecream')
expect(cart).to(have, 2, 'products')
})
})
describe('checkout', function(){
it ('should throw an error when checking out with no products', function(){
expect(function(){ cart.clear().checkout() }).to(throw_error, EmptyCart)
})
})
})
Custom Matchers
Custom matchers can be defined using JSpec.addMatchers. It’s possible to control the error messages. It’s also possible to create sets of macros with similar names:
JSpec.addMatchers({
'be disabled selected checked' : function(attr) {
return 'jQuery(actual).attr("' + attr + '")'
},
'have type id title alt href src sel rev name target' : function(attr) {
return function(actual, value) {
return value ? jQuery(actual).attr(attr) ## value:
jQuery(actual).attr(attr)
}
}
})
Other Features
JSpec includes a command-line tool that can initialise project templates, as well as auto-testing when files are changed. It can also work with Growl in Mac OS X. It includes lots of familiar matchers and works well in a browser and console.
Installation
To try JSpec out, you can install it with RubyGems — gem install jspec and read the docs on github.com/visionmedia/jspec.
