# Accelerate Your Development: how canary can streamline software development through efficient testing

## 1. Introduction to canary

### History of Software Testing
- **Early Testing Practices (1950s-1960s)**
  - The origins of software testing.
  - Manual testing and "test scripts" as early methods.

- **Structured Testing Methods (1970s)**
  - Introduction of structured programming leads to systematic testing approaches.
  - Emergence of "test cases" as a foundational concept in software testing.

- **Growth of Software Engineering (1980s)**
  - Software engineering emphasizes rigorous testing and formal methods.
  - IEEE 829 (1983) standardizes software test documentation.
  - SUnit (1989), one of the first unit testing frameworks, introduced by Kent Beck in the Smalltalk environment.
    - SUnit revolutionized the way developers thought about testing by enabling automated unit tests to be written as part of the development process.
    - Focus on isolated, small tests for individual components or functions.
  
  - **The Rise of Unit Testing** (1990s to Early 2000s)**
    - **JUnit**: Created by Erich Gamma and Kent Beck (1997), this Java-based framework became the cornerstone of modern unit testing practices.
    - The xUnit family of frameworks emerged, influencing the design of unit testing tools for nearly every programming language (e.g., NUnit for C#, PyTest for Python, etc.).
    - The introduction of conventions like assertions, test cases, test suites, and runners made unit testing accessible and standardized across platforms.
  
  - **Continuous Integration and Test Automation (2010s)**
    - As development processes matured, continuous integration (CI) systems like Jenkins, Travis CI, and GitLab integrated automated unit tests as part of the pipeline.
    - Test-driven development (TDD) became a popular methodology, encouraging developers to write tests before code.
    - ISO/IEC/IEEE 29119 standard supersedes IEEE 829

- **The Modern Era of Testing (2020s)**
  - Growth of integration testing, end-to-end testing, and performance testing.
  - Shift from purely unit tests to multi-environment testing, including cloud, mobile, and large-scale systems.
  - Need for flexible, scalable, and high-performance test runners to accommodate complex infrastructures, from laptops to HPC environments.

### Definitions

- **Test Case**: Specific set of conditions or variables under which a tester will determine whether a system or application is working correctly.
- **Test Suite**: A collection of test cases that are intended to be executed together.
- **Test Framework**: A set of guidelines or rules used for creating and designing test cases. It provides a structured environment that includes libraries, tools, and best practices to facilitate the testing process.
- **Test Fixtures**: Fixed states or conditions used as a baseline for running tests. They set up the necessary environment, data, and conditions required for the tests to execute properly.
- **Test Runner**: A tool that executes test cases and reports the results. It manages the execution of tests, collects the outcomes, and provides feedback on the success or failure of each test. Test runners can be part of a test framework or standalone tools that support various testing methodologies.

## 2. Introducing canary

- canary as a solution to modern software testing challenges.
- canary is not just a test framework like xUnit but a **test runner** designed to manage tests across **diverse hardware environments**.
- as a test runner, canary runs tests from a variety of sources through a plugin architecture.
- Highlight the **asynchronous execution** of tests and **plugin architecture** that allows for deep customization and integration.

### Why canary?
- Address the challenges of scaling tests across heterogeneous environments (local machines, cloud, HPC clusters).
- Flexibility to define custom test processes and integrate with various development tools and CI/CD systems.

### How canary Works
- canary searches for test files in the specified directories.
- It generates test cases from these files, interpreting the test definitions according to the rules and structures defined by the user or defaults.
- canary then runs these test cases asynchronously, allowing for efficient use of resources and faster completion of the test suite.

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## 3. Core Features of canary

- **Hardware Agnosticism**
  - Running tests on various hardware platforms (laptops, desktops, servers, HPC clusters).
  - Seamless integration with different environments.

- **Asynchronous Test Execution**
  - Benefits of asynchronous test execution.
  - How canary manages concurrent test executions and resource allocation.

- **Plugin Architecture**
  - Explanation of canary’s rich plugin architecture.
  - Customization and extensibility through plugins.

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## 4. canary Plugin Architecture

- **Test File Definition Plugin**
  - Overview of the test file definition mechanism.
  - Flexibility for users to define their own test files based on specific needs.
  - Customizable configurations and parameters.

- **Plugin Hooks Across the Testing Process**
  - Breakdown of available hooks: test execution, environment setup, reporting, and logging.
  - How plugins allow for integration with other tools and systems.

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## 5. Integration with Common Software Development Tools

- **CTests and CMake**
  - Integration with CTest and CMake for building and running tests.
  - How canary enhances these tools with its asynchronous execution and hardware versatility.

- **GitLab**
  - Integration with GitLab for Continuous Integration (CI).
  - canary's role in automating tests in GitLab pipelines.

- **JUnit**
  - Integration with JUnit for test results reporting and analysis.
  - Converting canary results into JUnit-compatible formats.

- **Plugin Flexibility**
  - Demonstration of how canary can interface with other tools (through plugins).
  - Examples of community-contributed plugins or potential custom integrations.

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## 6. Benefits of Using canary

- **Scalability**
  - Efficient scaling across different hardware environments (from local machines to large HPC clusters).
  - How canary handles scaling with minimal configuration.

- **Customization and Flexibility**
  - How users can tailor the testing process to fit their specific workflows.
  - Integration with proprietary tools or systems through plugins.

- **Improved Efficiency**
  - Faster feedback loops through asynchronous test execution.
  - Running tests in parallel across multiple machines or environments.

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## 7. Use Case Scenarios

- **Scenario 1: Running Tests in an HPC Environment**
  - Step-by-step demonstration of how canary can be used to execute tests on an HPC cluster.
  - Benefits of using canary for large-scale testing on high-performance hardware.

- **Scenario 2: Continuous Integration with GitLab**
  - How canary can be integrated into a GitLab CI/CD pipeline to automate testing.
  - Real-world example of setting up and executing tests in a GitLab pipeline with canary.

- **Scenario 3: Custom Test File Definition**
  - Customizing the test file format for a specific project or workflow.
  - How this flexibility improves the test process for specialized needs.

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## 8. Advanced Features

- **Environment Setup and Configuration**
  - Using canary to configure complex testing environments.
  - Automated setup and teardown of environments before and after tests.

- **Test Reporting and Results Analysis**
  - How canary generates detailed test reports.
  - Integration with other reporting tools or custom reporting plugins.

- **Error Handling and Test Failures**
  - canary’s approach to error management during test execution.
  - Strategies for isolating and debugging failing tests.

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## 9. Getting Started with canary

- **Installation and Setup**
  - Quick start guide for installing canary on different platforms (laptop, server, HPC).
  - Basic configuration and integration with existing tools (CTest, CMake, GitLab).

- **Creating and Running Your First Test**
  - Walkthrough of creating a simple test file and running it with canary.
  - Example output and analysis of results.

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## 10. Community and Support

- **canary Community**
  - Overview of the canary user and developer community.
  - How to contribute plugins, share test configurations, and seek support.

- **Documentation and Resources**
  - Accessing the official canary documentation.
  - Tutorials, guides, and FAQs for users and developers.

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## 11. Q&A / Interactive Discussion
- Open floor for questions from the audience.
- Address common issues, feedback, and additional use cases.

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## 12. Conclusion

- **Recap of Key Takeaways**
  - Why canary is a powerful and flexible test runner.
  - Its ability to scale, integrate, and customize for diverse testing needs.

- **Next Steps**
  - Encourage participants to explore canary and experiment with its features.
  - Share resources for further learning and involvement in the community.
