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1 | 1 | .. _testing: |
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2 | 2 | |
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3 | 3 | ========================================== |
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4 | 4 | Testing IPython for users and developers |
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5 | 5 | ========================================== |
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6 | 6 | |
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7 | 7 | Overview |
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8 | 8 | ======== |
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9 | 9 | |
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10 | 10 | It is extremely important that all code contributed to IPython has tests. |
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11 | 11 | Tests should be written as unittests, doctests or other entities that the |
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12 | 12 | IPython test system can detect. See below for more details on this. |
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13 | 13 | |
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14 | 14 | Each subpackage in IPython should have its own :file:`tests` directory that |
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15 | 15 | contains all of the tests for that subpackage. All of the files in the |
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16 | 16 | :file:`tests` directory should have the word "tests" in them to enable |
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17 | 17 | the testing framework to find them. |
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18 | 18 | |
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19 | 19 | In docstrings, examples (either using IPython prompts like ``In [1]:`` or |
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20 | 20 | 'classic' python ``>>>`` ones) can and should be included. The testing system |
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21 | 21 | will detect them as doctests and will run them; it offers control to skip parts |
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22 | 22 | or all of a specific doctest if the example is meant to be informative but |
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23 | 23 | shows non-reproducible information (like filesystem data). |
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24 | 24 | |
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25 | 25 | If a subpackage has any dependencies beyond the Python standard library, the |
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26 | 26 | tests for that subpackage should be skipped if the dependencies are not found. |
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27 | 27 | This is very important so users don't get tests failing simply because they |
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28 | 28 | don't have dependencies. |
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29 | 29 | |
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30 | 30 | The testing system we use is an extension of the nose_ test runner. |
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31 | 31 | In particular we've |
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32 | 32 | developed a nose plugin that allows us to paste verbatim IPython sessions and |
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33 | 33 | test them as doctests, which is extremely important for us. |
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34 | 34 | |
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35 | 35 | .. _nose: http://code.google.com/p/python-nose |
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36 | 36 | |
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37 | 37 | |
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38 | 38 | For the impatient: running the tests |
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39 | 39 | ==================================== |
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40 | 40 | |
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41 | 41 | You can run IPython from the source download directory without even installing |
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42 | 42 | it system-wide or having configure anything, by typing at the terminal: |
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43 | 43 | |
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44 | 44 | .. code-block:: bash |
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45 | 45 | |
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46 | 46 | python ipython.py |
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47 | 47 | |
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48 | 48 | In order to run the test suite, you must at least be able to import IPython, |
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49 | 49 | even if you haven't fully installed the user-facing scripts yet (common in a |
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50 | 50 | development environment). You can then run the tests with: |
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51 | 51 | |
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52 | 52 | .. code-block:: bash |
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53 | 53 | |
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54 | 54 | python -c "import IPython; IPython.test()" |
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55 | 55 | |
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56 | 56 | Once you have installed IPython either via a full install or using: |
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57 | 57 | |
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58 | 58 | .. code-block:: bash |
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59 | 59 | |
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60 | 60 | python setup.py develop |
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61 | 61 | |
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62 | 62 | you will have available a system-wide script called :file:`iptest` that runs |
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63 | 63 | the full test suite. You can then run the suite with: |
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64 | 64 | |
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65 | 65 | .. code-block:: bash |
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66 | 66 | |
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67 | 67 | iptest [args] |
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68 | 68 | |
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69 | 69 | |
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70 | 70 | Regardless of how you run things, you should eventually see something like: |
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71 | 71 | |
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72 | 72 | .. code-block:: bash |
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73 | 73 | |
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74 | 74 | ********************************************************************** |
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75 | 75 | Test suite completed for system with the following information: |
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76 | 76 | {'commit_hash': '144fdae', |
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77 | 77 | 'commit_source': 'repository', |
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78 | 78 | 'ipython_path': '/home/fperez/usr/lib/python2.6/site-packages/IPython', |
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79 | 79 | 'ipython_version': '0.11.dev', |
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80 | 80 | 'os_name': 'posix', |
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81 | 81 | 'platform': 'Linux-2.6.35-22-generic-i686-with-Ubuntu-10.10-maverick', |
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82 | 82 | 'sys_executable': '/usr/bin/python', |
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83 | 83 | 'sys_platform': 'linux2', |
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84 | 84 | 'sys_version': '2.6.6 (r266:84292, Sep 15 2010, 15:52:39) \n[GCC 4.4.5]'} |
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85 | 85 | |
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86 | 86 | Tools and libraries available at test time: |
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87 | curses foolscap gobject gtk pexpect twisted wx wx.aui zope.interface | |
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87 | curses matplotlib pymongo qt sqlite3 tornado wx wx.aui zmq | |
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88 | 88 | |
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89 | 89 | Ran 9 test groups in 67.213s |
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90 | 90 | |
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91 | 91 | Status: |
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92 | 92 | OK |
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93 | 93 | |
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94 | 94 | |
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95 | 95 | If not, there will be a message indicating which test group failed and how to |
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96 | 96 | rerun that group individually. For example, this tests the |
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97 | 97 | :mod:`IPython.utils` subpackage, the :option:`-v` option shows progress |
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98 | 98 | indicators: |
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99 | 99 | |
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100 | 100 | .. code-block:: bash |
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101 | 101 | |
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102 | 102 | $ iptest -v IPython.utils |
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103 | 103 | ..........................SS..SSS............................S.S... |
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104 | 104 | ......................................................... |
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105 | 105 | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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106 | 106 | Ran 125 tests in 0.119s |
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107 | 107 | |
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108 | 108 | OK (SKIP=7) |
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109 | 109 | |
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110 | 110 | |
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111 | 111 | Because the IPython test machinery is based on nose, you can use all nose |
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112 | 112 | options and syntax, typing ``iptest -h`` shows all available options. For |
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113 | 113 | example, this lets you run the specific test :func:`test_rehashx` inside the |
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114 | 114 | :mod:`test_magic` module: |
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115 | 115 | |
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116 | 116 | .. code-block:: bash |
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117 | 117 | |
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118 | 118 | $ iptest -vv IPython.core.tests.test_magic:test_rehashx |
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119 | 119 | IPython.core.tests.test_magic.test_rehashx(True,) ... ok |
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120 | 120 | IPython.core.tests.test_magic.test_rehashx(True,) ... ok |
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121 | 121 | |
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122 | 122 | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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123 | 123 | Ran 2 tests in 0.100s |
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124 | 124 | |
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125 | 125 | OK |
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126 | 126 | |
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127 | 127 | When developing, the :option:`--pdb` and :option:`--pdb-failures` of nose are |
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128 | 128 | particularly useful, these drop you into an interactive pdb session at the |
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129 | 129 | point of the error or failure respectively. |
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130 | 130 | |
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131 | 131 | .. note:: |
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132 | 132 | |
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133 | 133 | The system information summary printed above is accessible from the top |
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134 | 134 | level package. If you encounter a problem with IPython, it's useful to |
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135 | 135 | include this information when reporting on the mailing list; use:: |
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136 | 136 | |
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137 | 137 | from IPython import sys_info |
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138 | 138 | print sys_info() |
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139 | 139 | |
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140 | 140 | and include the resulting information in your query. |
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141 | 141 | |
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142 | 142 | For developers: writing tests |
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143 | 143 | ============================= |
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144 | 144 | |
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145 | 145 | By now IPython has a reasonable test suite, so the best way to see what's |
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146 | 146 | available is to look at the :file:`tests` directory in most subpackages. But |
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147 | 147 | here are a few pointers to make the process easier. |
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148 | 148 | |
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149 | 149 | |
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150 | 150 | Main tools: :mod:`IPython.testing` |
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151 | 151 | ---------------------------------- |
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152 | 152 | |
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153 | 153 | The :mod:`IPython.testing` package is where all of the machinery to test |
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154 | 154 | IPython (rather than the tests for its various parts) lives. In particular, |
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155 | 155 | the :mod:`iptest` module in there has all the smarts to control the test |
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156 | 156 | process. In there, the :func:`make_exclude` function is used to build a |
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157 | 157 | blacklist of exclusions, these are modules that do not get even imported for |
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158 | 158 | tests. This is important so that things that would fail to even import because |
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159 | 159 | of missing dependencies don't give errors to end users, as we stated above. |
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160 | 160 | |
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161 | 161 | The :mod:`decorators` module contains a lot of useful decorators, especially |
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162 | 162 | useful to mark individual tests that should be skipped under certain conditions |
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163 | 163 | (rather than blacklisting the package altogether because of a missing major |
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164 | 164 | dependency). |
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165 | 165 | |
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166 | 166 | Our nose plugin for doctests |
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167 | 167 | ---------------------------- |
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168 | 168 | |
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169 | 169 | The :mod:`plugin` subpackage in testing contains a nose plugin called |
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170 | 170 | :mod:`ipdoctest` that teaches nose about IPython syntax, so you can write |
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171 | 171 | doctests with IPython prompts. You can also mark doctest output with ``# |
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172 | 172 | random`` for the output corresponding to a single input to be ignored (stronger |
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173 | 173 | than using ellipsis and useful to keep it as an example). If you want the |
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174 | 174 | entire docstring to be executed but none of the output from any input to be |
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175 | 175 | checked, you can use the ``# all-random`` marker. The |
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176 | 176 | :mod:`IPython.testing.plugin.dtexample` module contains examples of how to use |
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177 | 177 | these; for reference here is how to use ``# random``:: |
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178 | 178 | |
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179 | 179 | def ranfunc(): |
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180 | 180 | """A function with some random output. |
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181 | 181 | |
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182 | 182 | Normal examples are verified as usual: |
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183 | 183 | >>> 1+3 |
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184 | 184 | 4 |
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185 | 185 | |
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186 | 186 | But if you put '# random' in the output, it is ignored: |
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187 | 187 | >>> 1+3 |
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188 | 188 | junk goes here... # random |
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189 | 189 | |
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190 | 190 | >>> 1+2 |
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191 | 191 | again, anything goes #random |
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192 | 192 | if multiline, the random mark is only needed once. |
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193 | 193 | |
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194 | 194 | >>> 1+2 |
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195 | 195 | You can also put the random marker at the end: |
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196 | 196 | # random |
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197 | 197 | |
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198 | 198 | >>> 1+2 |
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199 | 199 | # random |
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200 | 200 | .. or at the beginning. |
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201 | 201 | |
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202 | 202 | More correct input is properly verified: |
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203 | 203 | >>> ranfunc() |
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204 | 204 | 'ranfunc' |
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205 | 205 | """ |
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206 | 206 | return 'ranfunc' |
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207 | 207 | |
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208 | 208 | and an example of ``# all-random``:: |
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209 | 209 | |
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210 | 210 | def random_all(): |
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211 | 211 | """A function where we ignore the output of ALL examples. |
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212 | 212 | |
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213 | 213 | Examples: |
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214 | 214 | |
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215 | 215 | # all-random |
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216 | 216 | |
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217 | 217 | This mark tells the testing machinery that all subsequent examples |
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218 | 218 | should be treated as random (ignoring their output). They are still |
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219 | 219 | executed, so if a they raise an error, it will be detected as such, |
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220 | 220 | but their output is completely ignored. |
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221 | 221 | |
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222 | 222 | >>> 1+3 |
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223 | 223 | junk goes here... |
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224 | 224 | |
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225 | 225 | >>> 1+3 |
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226 | 226 | klasdfj; |
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227 | 227 | |
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228 | 228 | In [8]: print 'hello' |
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229 | 229 | world # random |
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230 | 230 | |
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231 | 231 | In [9]: iprand() |
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232 | 232 | Out[9]: 'iprand' |
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233 | 233 | """ |
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234 | 234 | return 'iprand' |
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235 | 235 | |
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236 | 236 | |
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237 | 237 | When writing docstrings, you can use the ``@skip_doctest`` decorator to |
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238 | 238 | indicate that a docstring should *not* be treated as a doctest at all. The |
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239 | 239 | difference between ``# all-random`` and ``@skip_doctest`` is that the former |
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240 | 240 | executes the example but ignores output, while the latter doesn't execute any |
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241 | 241 | code. ``@skip_doctest`` should be used for docstrings whose examples are |
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242 | 242 | purely informational. |
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243 | 243 | |
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244 | 244 | If a given docstring fails under certain conditions but otherwise is a good |
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245 | 245 | doctest, you can use code like the following, that relies on the 'null' |
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246 | 246 | decorator to leave the docstring intact where it works as a test:: |
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247 | 247 | |
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248 | 248 | # The docstring for full_path doctests differently on win32 (different path |
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249 | 249 | # separator) so just skip the doctest there, and use a null decorator |
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250 | 250 | # elsewhere: |
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251 | 251 | |
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252 | 252 | doctest_deco = dec.skip_doctest if sys.platform == 'win32' else dec.null_deco |
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253 | 253 | |
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254 | 254 | @doctest_deco |
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255 | 255 | def full_path(startPath,files): |
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256 | 256 | """Make full paths for all the listed files, based on startPath...""" |
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257 | 257 | |
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258 | 258 | # function body follows... |
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259 | 259 | |
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260 | 260 | With our nose plugin that understands IPython syntax, an extremely effective |
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261 | 261 | way to write tests is to simply copy and paste an interactive session into a |
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262 | 262 | docstring. You can writing this type of test, where your docstring is meant |
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263 | 263 | *only* as a test, by prefixing the function name with ``doctest_`` and leaving |
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264 | 264 | its body *absolutely empty* other than the docstring. In |
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265 | 265 | :mod:`IPython.core.tests.test_magic` you can find several examples of this, but |
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266 | 266 | for completeness sake, your code should look like this (a simple case):: |
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267 | 267 | |
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268 | 268 | def doctest_time(): |
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269 | 269 | """ |
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270 | 270 | In [10]: %time None |
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271 | 271 | CPU times: user 0.00 s, sys: 0.00 s, total: 0.00 s |
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272 | 272 | Wall time: 0.00 s |
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273 | 273 | """ |
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274 | 274 | |
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275 | 275 | This function is only analyzed for its docstring but it is not considered a |
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276 | 276 | separate test, which is why its body should be empty. |
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277 | 277 | |
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278 | 278 | |
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279 | 279 | Parametric tests done right |
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280 | 280 | --------------------------- |
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281 | 281 | |
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282 | 282 | If you need to run multiple tests inside the same standalone function or method |
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283 | 283 | of a :class:`unittest.TestCase` subclass, IPython provides the ``parametric`` |
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284 | 284 | decorator for this purpose. This is superior to how test generators work in |
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285 | 285 | nose, because IPython's keeps intact your stack, which makes debugging vastly |
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286 | 286 | easier. For example, these are some parametric tests both in class form and as |
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287 | 287 | a standalone function (choose in each situation the style that best fits the |
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288 | 288 | problem at hand, since both work):: |
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289 | 289 | |
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290 | 290 | from IPython.testing import decorators as dec |
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291 | 291 | |
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292 | 292 | def is_smaller(i,j): |
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293 | 293 | assert i<j,"%s !< %s" % (i,j) |
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294 | 294 | |
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295 | 295 | class Tester(ParametricTestCase): |
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296 | 296 | |
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297 | 297 | def test_parametric(self): |
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298 | 298 | yield is_smaller(3, 4) |
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299 | 299 | x, y = 1, 2 |
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300 | 300 | yield is_smaller(x, y) |
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301 | 301 | |
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302 | 302 | @dec.parametric |
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303 | 303 | def test_par_standalone(): |
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304 | 304 | yield is_smaller(3, 4) |
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305 | 305 | x, y = 1, 2 |
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306 | 306 | yield is_smaller(x, y) |
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307 | 307 | |
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308 | 308 | |
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309 | 309 | Design requirements |
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310 | 310 | =================== |
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311 | 311 | |
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312 | 312 | This section is a set of notes on the key points of the IPython testing needs, |
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313 | 313 | that were used when writing the system and should be kept for reference as it |
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314 | 314 | eveolves. |
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315 | 315 | |
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316 | 316 | Testing IPython in full requires modifications to the default behavior of nose |
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317 | 317 | and doctest, because the IPython prompt is not recognized to determine Python |
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318 | 318 | input, and because IPython admits user input that is not valid Python (things |
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319 | 319 | like ``%magics`` and ``!system commands``. |
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320 | 320 | |
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321 | 321 | We basically need to be able to test the following types of code: |
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322 | 322 | |
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323 | 323 | 1. Pure Python files containing normal tests. These are not a problem, since |
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324 | 324 | Nose will pick them up as long as they conform to the (flexible) conventions |
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325 | 325 | used by nose to recognize tests. |
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326 | 326 | |
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327 | 327 | 2. Python files containing doctests. Here, we have two possibilities: |
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328 | 328 | |
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329 | 329 | - The prompts are the usual ``>>>`` and the input is pure Python. |
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330 | 330 | - The prompts are of the form ``In [1]:`` and the input can contain extended |
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331 | 331 | IPython expressions. |
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332 | 332 | |
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333 | 333 | In the first case, Nose will recognize the doctests as long as it is called |
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334 | 334 | with the ``--with-doctest`` flag. But the second case will likely require |
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335 | 335 | modifications or the writing of a new doctest plugin for Nose that is |
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336 | 336 | IPython-aware. |
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337 | 337 | |
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338 | 338 | 3. ReStructuredText files that contain code blocks. For this type of file, we |
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339 | 339 | have three distinct possibilities for the code blocks: |
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340 | 340 | |
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341 | 341 | - They use ``>>>`` prompts. |
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342 | 342 | - They use ``In [1]:`` prompts. |
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343 | 343 | - They are standalone blocks of pure Python code without any prompts. |
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344 | 344 | |
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345 | 345 | The first two cases are similar to the situation #2 above, except that in |
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346 | 346 | this case the doctests must be extracted from input code blocks using |
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347 | 347 | docutils instead of from the Python docstrings. |
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348 | 348 | |
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349 | 349 | In the third case, we must have a convention for distinguishing code blocks |
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350 | 350 | that are meant for execution from others that may be snippets of shell code |
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351 | 351 | or other examples not meant to be run. One possibility is to assume that |
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352 | 352 | all indented code blocks are meant for execution, but to have a special |
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353 | 353 | docutils directive for input that should not be executed. |
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354 | 354 | |
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355 | 355 | For those code blocks that we will execute, the convention used will simply |
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356 | 356 | be that they get called and are considered successful if they run to |
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357 | 357 | completion without raising errors. This is similar to what Nose does for |
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358 | 358 | standalone test functions, and by putting asserts or other forms of |
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359 | 359 | exception-raising statements it becomes possible to have literate examples |
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360 | 360 | that double as lightweight tests. |
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361 | 361 | |
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362 | 362 | 4. Extension modules with doctests in function and method docstrings. |
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363 | 363 | Currently Nose simply can't find these docstrings correctly, because the |
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364 | 364 | underlying doctest DocTestFinder object fails there. Similarly to #2 above, |
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365 | 365 | the docstrings could have either pure python or IPython prompts. |
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366 | 366 | |
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367 | 367 | Of these, only 3-c (reST with standalone code blocks) is not implemented at |
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368 | 368 | this point. |
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