Make writing tests fun
Benjamin Stover
> "domshell" for some time: it'd let you load a page, construct the DOM,
> and whack at it with script, without requiring a window or the
> rendering system or the rest of the browser. Would need to
> parameterize things like window size and so forth, but I think it
> would carve deeply into the cycle time for developers working on
> content features, and probably help with our automated test time, too.
>
>
Yes. This.
In the spirit of creating something that moves us forward, I've started a
brainstorming etherpad with this idea and some of my own:
http://ietherpad.com/mozilla-test-tools
It's worth noting that the details matter. I know we devs tend to think of
ourselves as very practical and rationally minded, but the longer I make
stuff the more I am convinced that an emotional feeling of using these tools
is crucial to a happy developer. So let's get some ideas, and I'll be happy
to file some bugs!
Ben
Nicholas Nethercote
>> FWIW, I've been banging the drum (but not my editor, alas) on a
>> "domshell" for some time: it'd let you load a page, construct the DOM,
>> and whack at it with script, without requiring a window or the
>> rendering system or the rest of the browser.
>>
>>
>
> In the spirit of creating something that moves us forward, I've started a
> brainstorming etherpad with this idea and some of my own:
> http://ietherpad.com/mozilla-test-tools
Cool. I know that having the JS shell makes JS engine development
vastly easier. I even wrote a blog post a while back whining about
having to work on the browser:
http://blog.mozilla.com/nnethercote/2011/05/20/working-on-the-browser-sucks/.
(What I learnt from that: get a faster machine, it makes a big
difference.)
Having said that, it's nice to actually build the browser with some
frequency. I barely ever did that in the first 2 years I worked for
Mozilla, and now that I do it regularly I feel more involved -- I
actually see changes in the UI when they happen, etc.
Nick