Testing Scenarios

testing_scenarios.rb

#### TESTING SCENARIOS
### GENERAL
# When it comes to testing you'll want to write tests
# for every outcome of anything (method call, object instantiation,
# redirect, etc.) to verify that what you expect to happen actually happens,
# regardless of how rarely you think it may happen.
#
# Ultimately what this boils down to is testing:
# - every condition of a conditional (if/else, case, etc.)
# - method
#   - unexpected values passed as parameters
#   - return values
#
# Ex.
if some_number is > 0 && some_number < 100
  # test the code in this case...
  ...
elsif some_number > 100
  # ...and this case...
  ...
elsif some_number < 0
  # ...and this case...
  ...
else
  # ...and this "extremely rare" case. 
  ...
end

# Ex.
def add(first_number, second_number)
  return first_number + second_number
  # What if one of the parameters is a string? Or if one of them is nil?
end

### RAILS
## MODELS
# For models you'll want to test:
# - validatons
# - methods
# - expected associations exist

## CONTROLLERS
# For controllers you'll want to test:
# - HTTP status code returned (http://bit.ly/1fFATGL)
# - is the user redirected properly when the action is a success? When it fails?
# - is there a difference in the redirect or what happens in an action when a user is 
#   signed in? What about when a user isn't signed in?
# - what happens when there's an unexpected error (i.e. ActiveRecord::RecordNotFound)?

### RSPEC
## BEFORE BLOCKS
# You can set up some variables before you run tests, which is super helpful for testing
# most everything, but is indespensible when testing controller actions
#
# ex
describe SomeController do
  before(:each) do
    # whatever you put here will happen before every test that comes after it. You can:
    # - initialize some instance variables
    # - create some records in the database
    # - set up a hash to use as params before you test a controller action
    ...
  end
  
  it "should pass this test" do
    # The test code here will use whatever instance variables you've set up in the before block
    ...
  end
end

## TIPS
# for testing controller actions when a user is logged in and when a user isn't logged in,
# Devise provides some really nice helpers. (http://bit.ly/1wlEjcm, Controller Specs section)