Ask HN: Do you write unit tests at your startup?

7 points·jwdunne··6 comments

For anybody who writes code and works for or founded a start up, do you write unit tests for your code?

Have you always written unit tests or did you eschew them when building a prototype?

I'd think it's always a good idea, no one minds when there are easy to run unit tests included in the open source project that they just downloaded. However, depending on time restraints, timing, financial concerns, scale, dealing with critical systems, etc, it may or may not be better to push something out without having any formal tests. I think some form of formal testing should be pursued in general.

The startup company I'm working on writes unit test. But in my own personal projects, as much as I know that it's a good practice, I don't. I just don't seem to like unit tests. I also want to finish the features I like first and then just test it in real use. I do functional tests, but not unit test.

Depends what you mean by "unit tests".

I tend to test drive the vast majority of my code - prototypes and all. So I end up with a unit-ish test suite.

I rarely write tests post-coding for initial prototype work.

I think it would have been better to make my question more general and ask about automated testing rather than unit testing specifically. I can still change it if you're happy to modify your answer?

Thanks for your answer :)

unit test are always good and specially for startup's because they come handy to rescue when the original developer of the code had left you and a defect is raised. but as CoryG said there are always constraints with startups which stop them from doing that.

this depends on your coding style. If you are used to TDD, so most of the test will be written.

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