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A master's thesis from Aalborg University
Book cover


Test-Driven Development: 15 years later

Author

Term

4. term

Publication year

2014

Submitted on

Pages

59

Abstract

Afhandlingen undersøger, hvordan Test-Driven Development (TDD)—praksissen med at skrive automatiserede tests før man skriver koden—har udviklet sig gennem de sidste 15 år. Den anvender først beskrivende forskning til at afklare, hvad TDD er, hvordan det praktiseres, og hvilke fordele og begrænsninger det har, og bruger derefter en eksplorativ tilgang til at undersøge nyere ændringer og åbne spørgsmål. Arbejdet tager fat på detaljer, der ofte misforstås, samler udbredte myter og misforståelser og forklarer eller udfordrer dem. Det behandler også udsagnet 'TDD is dead', fremsat af David Heinemeier Hansson, og den debat, det satte i gang. Afslutningsvis sammenfatter afhandlingen velbegrundet kritik af TDD og foreslår måder, hvorpå tilgangen kan imødekomme disse bekymringer.

This thesis explores how Test-Driven Development (TDD)—the practice of writing automated tests before writing the code—has evolved over the past 15 years. It first uses descriptive research to clarify what TDD is, how it is practiced, and its benefits and limitations, and then applies exploratory research to investigate recent changes and open questions. The work addresses details that are often misunderstood, catalogs widely shared myths and misconceptions, and explains or challenges them. It also examines the 'TDD is dead' claim introduced by David Heinemeier Hansson and the discussion it sparked. In conclusion, the thesis summarizes well-founded critiques of TDD and proposes ways the approach could respond to these concerns.

[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]