[Python-Dev] Unit testing (again)

[Thomas Wouters]

On Wed, Feb 14, 2001 at 06:57:35PM +0200, Moshe Zadka wrote:
> On Tue, 13 Feb 2001 20:24:00 -0500, "Tim Peters" <tim.one@home.com> wrote:
> > Not me -- there's nothing in them that I as a potential user don't need to
> > know.  But then I think the Library docs are too terse in general.  Indeed,
> > Fredrick makes part of his living selling a 300-page book supplying
> > desperately needed Library examples <0.5 wink>.

> I'm sorry, Tim, that's just too true.

You should be appologizing to Fred, not Tim :) While I agree with the both
of you, I'm not sure if expanding the library reference is going to help the
problem. I think what's missing is a library *tutorial*. The reference is
exactly that, a reference, and if we expand the reference we'll end up
cursing it ourself, should we ever need it. (okay, so noone here needs the
reference anymore <wink> except me, but when looking at the reference, I
like the terse descriptions of the modules. They're just reminders anyway.)

I remember when I'd finished the Python tutorial and wondered where to go
next. I tried reading the library reference, but it was boring and most of
it not interesting (since it isn't built up to go from useful/common ->
rare, but just a list of all modules ordered by 'service'.) I ended up doing
the slow and cheap version of Fredrik's book: reading python-list ;)

I'll write the library tutorial once I finish the 'from-foo-import-*
considered harmful' chapter ;-)

-- 
Thomas Wouters <thomas@xs4all.net>

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