Posts Tagged eclipse
Super fast JS Testing
Before I jump into how exactly you can perform super fast and easy JS testing, let me give you some background on the problem.
Javascript is a finicky language (Some people even hesitate to call it a language). And it can easily grow and become a horrible and complicated beast, incapable of being tamed once let loose. And testing it is a nightmare. Once you have decided on a framework (of which there are a dime a dozen), you then have to set it up to run just right. You need to set it up to actually run your tests. Then you have to figure out how to run it in a continuous integration environment. Maybe even run it in headless mode. And everyone solves it in their own ways.
But the biggest problem I have with most of these frameworks is that executing the tests usually requires a context switch. By that, I mean to run a JSUnit test, you end up usually having to open the browser, browse to a particular url or html page which then runs the test. Then you have to look at the results there, and then come back to your editor to either proceed further or fix your tests. Works, but really slows down development.
In java, all it takes is to click the run button in your IDE to run your tests. You get instant feedback, a green / red bar and details on which tests passed and failed and at what line. No context switch, you can get it to run at every save, and proceed on your merry way. Till now, this was not possible with Javascript.
But now, we have JS Test Driver. My colleagues Jeremie and Misko ended up running into some of the issues I outlined above, and decided that going along with the flow was simply unacceptable. So they created a JS Testing framework which solves these very things. You can capture any browser on any machine, and when you tell it to run tests, it will go ahead and execute them on all these browsers and return you the results in your client. And its blazing fast. I am talking milliseconds to run 100 odd tests. And you can tell it to rerun your tests at each save. All within the comforts of your IDE. And over the last three weeks, I have been working on the eclipse plugin for JS Test Driver, and its now at the point where its in a decent working condition.
The plugin in action
The plugin allows you to, from within Eclipse, start the JS Test Driver server, capture some browsers, and then run your tests. You get pretty icons telling you what browsers were captured, the state of the server, the state of the tests. It allows you to filter and show only failures, rerun your last launch configuration, even setup the paths to your browsers so you can launch it all from the safety of eclipse. And as you can see, its super fast. Some 100 odd tests in less than 10 ms. If thats not fast, I don’t know what is.
For more details on JS Test Driver, visit its Google Code website and see how you can use it in your next project and even integrate it into a continuous integration. Misko talks a little bit more about the motivations behind writing it on his Yet Another JS Testing Framework post. To try out the plugin for yourselves, go add the following update site to eclipse : http://js-test-driver.googlecode.com/svn/update/. For all you IntelliJ fanatics, there is something similar in the works.
Gathering Rapid Feedback with TDD, better known as Infinitest!
So I have had this question often, especially from TDDers, on what the best way is to get rapid feedback as you type. One of the biggest things when you do Test Driven Development is the fact that you can see a Red / Green bar or some sort of indicator of your tests. Because that indicator is what tells you what you should be doing. Green bar? Time to write a failing test so you can add that next feature in. Red bar? Well, you know what is broken, so time to go ahead and write that feature. So initially, I used to just hit Alt + Shift + X, T to run the test I was currently editing. And then I learnt the joys of Ctrl + F11, which re runs your last configuration.
But still, I was left wanting more. I mean, I don’t want to have to hit something to tell eclipse to go run my tests. Eclipse already knows when I save, as it can automatically shoot off a build. Why couldn’t I just have another step afterwards which then runs my test, so I don’t have to do anything? It was along this line of thought that I stumbled upon Misko‘s setup of using build steps to run all unit tests at each save. Hallelujah! But the more I used this, the more I started realizing its pain points. You actually had to setup each project to do this? Uh, no. Not happening. Too much effort. I like being lazy.
So then I happened upon this Infinitest thing. The description sounds promising, “A continuous test runner for your JUnit tests.” And what, it “integrates with Eclipse and IntelliJ“. And its “Intelligent and runs only tests that are needed.” I’m sold, where do I sign up? So I went ahead and installed it, and tried it out. And it actually seems to live up to its claim, so far. Its main configuration has a single checkbox, which basically says run Infinitest or don’t run it. Nice. And it integrates seamlessly with the problems view. Like so :
Infinitest results in the problem view
As can be seen above, I made a change which broke two tests. Half a second after I saved those changes, I have problem markers popping up all over my project telling me that the last thing I just did blew up some tests. I can double click on the markers, go to the exact line where the failure is, and see if it was an issue of the test being wrong or me being stupid. And in some cases, that isn’t even needed, because you know the tests shouldn’t have broken.
Infinitest seems to be smart enough to recognize all JUnit tests without you having to point it out, and runs only the tests that matter, and not all of it. But if you have other kinds of tests, then you might run into trouble. I am still playing around with it, and will probably update this post or add a new post later with more detailed info if I deem it necessary. But in the meantime, for those of you who want to run tests at every save, check out Infinitest. It is awesome!
Eclipse Productivity Shortcuts
Back in college, I used to be a notepad nazi, so as to say. I used to code all my giant programs solely in notepad (The most I upgraded to was to Textpad). And once I joined Google, I was apathetic to IDEs, so I just picked IntelliJ and went with it. Somewhere down the line, I attended a Testing and Refactoring workshop, and the only IDE available was Eclipse. And it was for a great reason.
While the focus of the workshop was testing and refactoring, what they did do, which I applaud them for, was they showed us some awesome shortcuts. And suddenly, I was doing these insane refactorings at the blink of the eye. It was then that I started searching for and learning every eclipse shortcut that would help me be more productive. And before I knew it, I was typing 6 words a minute and coding up 100 words a minute 
. And I loved it.
And so, today, I just wanted to share the best shortcuts that make life easier. And without further ado :
Ctrl + Space : One of the two most important keyboard shortcuts that eclipse offers. This one is probably commonly known for autocomplete in eclipse, but not many people know that it is also context sensitive. For example, hitting Ctrl + Space when you are in the middle of typing will show you all members and methods that begin with your text. But hitting Ctrl + Space when you have nothing typed shows you all members and properties available. But the real eclipse masters know that, hitting Ctrl + Space when you type in for or foreach will show you autocomplete options for generating a for loop or for each loop. And if you do it right after you assign something to a collection or a list, it will fill in the loop variables for the for each loop. Autocomplete after typing in test, will allow you to generate the skeleton of a JUnit test case method. Autocomplete after typing in new, generates you a skeleton for a new call, which you can tab through and fill in. So many more uses and use cases for Ctrl + Space that can be found. You can generate / override method signatures in child classes. Just use and abuse it, and you will learn so much.
Ctrl + 1 : If there is just one more shortcut you remember from this post, let it be this one. The other super awesome, context sensitive shortcut in Eclipse, which is basically Quick Fix. If you have an error in a line, Ctrl + 1 will show you potential options to fix it, like importing a class, or adding an argument to a method or fixing the method signature. If you just do a method call which returns something, then you can hit Ctrl + 1 and ask it to assign it to a new local or field variable. You can hit Ctrl + 1 on a parameter to a method and assign it to a field. Ctrl + 1 on a variable can allow you to inline it, and on an assignment, can allow you to split up the declaration and assignment, or convert it to a field, parameter, etc. It is, by far, The Most Awesome Keyboard shortcut that you can know and use. Especially on errors!
Ctrl + F11 : Reruns the last run configuration that was executed. If you do TDD, then Alt + Shift + X, T followed by Ctrl + F11 is the most standard approach.
Ctrl + Shift + R : Shows the Open Resource dialog. Type to filter, and jump directly between classes. I love this shortcut, and use and abuse it!
Ctrl + Shift + O : Organizes Imports, and gets rid of unused imports.
Ctrl + O : Shows the methods and properties of a class. You can start typing to filter and hit enter to jump to a particular signature / type. Hitting Ctrl + O again toggles showing inherited members. Very useful for jumping between sections in a class, or finding that one method you want to get to.
Ctrl + T : Opens the Type Heirarchy. Shows all super classes as well as sub classes / implementing types in your class path. Very useful for jumping to an implementation class. Can be called from the class type, or even a method signature. Can toggle between Supertype and Subtype heirarchy if you hit Ctrl + T again. Again, you can type and filter once you are in this menu.
Ctrl + / : Comment / Uncomment code. Single or multiple lines, depending on what you have selected. Enuff said.
Alt + Shift + R : One of my most used shortcuts, Rename. It renames anything from variables to methods to even classes, renaming the class files if necessary. Also fixes all references to refer to it by the new name. Can sometimes break if there are compile errors, so watch out when you use it. You can also ask it to fix all textual references as well.
Alt + Shift + M : Extract Method. Super useful method to break up a larger method into smaller chunks. If the code block you have selected does not need to return too many types, and looks reasonable as a separate method, then pulls up a prompt where you can basically edit the method signature, including return type, method name and order and type of parameters. Very useful
Alt + Shift + C : Only useful when the cursor is on a method signature, but this one allows you to refactor and change the method signature. This includes changing the return type, method name, and the parameters to the method, including order, and default values if you are introducing a new one. Automagically fixes all references to said method.
Alt + Shift + L : Once you have a expression selected (a method call, or whatever), then Alt + Shift + L extracts that to a local variable. It prompts you for the name of the variable, and automatically infers the type as best as it can. Extremely useful shortcut!
Alt + Shift + Up / Down : This one is a useful one. If you hit up, it selects the next biggest code block, down selects the next smallest. Useful in conjunction with refactoring shortcuts like extract local variable, extract method, etc. Useful to know.
Alt + Shift + T : Brings up the Refactor menu. Depending on the context, this will show options like Rename, Move, Extract Interfaces and classes, Change Method Signature, etc. Nice to know, but not one I use very often. The ones I do use have already been listed above.
Alt + Shift + S : Shows the Source menu. This includes menu options like Comment related, and the ever useful Override / Implement Methods, Generate Getters and Setters, and much more. Some of the menu options have direct shortcuts, but a lot of the generate commands don’t, so useful to know.
Alt + Shift + X : Pulls up the Run menu, and shows what key you have to press to run a particular type. Now I generally use this as Alt + Shift + X, followed by T, which basically executes a JUnit Test. Fastest way to run unit tests without leaving the comfort of your keyboard.
Alt + Up / Down : Moves a block of lines up or down. Rather than say, selecting, hitting Ctrl + X and then going to the place and pasting, why not just select all the lines, and use Alt + Up or Down to move them. Automatically handles indentation depending on the block. Very convenient
Ctrl + D : Nice and Simple, deletes the current line the cursor is on. If you have selected multiple lines, then they are all blown away. Much faster than selecting a line and hitting delete.
UPDATE: Adding in some of the shortcuts that I forgot or were mentioned in the comments for easy finding
Ctrl + L : Jump to a Line number
Ctrl + Shift + T : Display available types. A better version of Ctrl + Shift + R if you are only looking for Java classes
Alt + Shift + Up / Down : Duplicate selected lines above or below. Easier than hitting Ctrl + C followed by Ctrl + V
Ctrl + Alt + H : This one, I didn’t know about. but pulls up the Call heirarchy, showing you all callers and users of the method under the cursor. Super useful, especially if you are refactoring.
Ctrl + Shift + L : Show the list of shortcuts. You can hit it again to go in and edit your shortcuts.
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