Welcome to my corner of the digital universe! I'm Andreas Nurbo, a WordPress enthusiast and developer on a mission to streamline and enhance your WordPress experience. Whether you're a seasoned developer, a casual blogger, or just someone curious about the world of WordPress, I'm here to make your journey smoother and more enjoyable.
A Glimpse into My WordPress Journey
My passion for WordPress development was ignited during my work on various projects. I found myself frustrated with the standard WordPress testing setup using PHPUnit, especially when combining unit and integration tests. The process of running tests became sluggish due to WordPress installations and loading for each run. But I believed there had to be a better way.
With that in mind, I took it upon myself to refactor and restructure the WordPress testing tools into a separate project. The result? The WP Testing project, now Composer compatible with autoloading support. It might not be a drop-in replacement for the existing WordPress testing setup, but it's incredibly easy to make your old projects compatible.
The Power of WP Testing Framework
So, what can you achieve with the new WP Testing framework? Let's take a look:
- Separate Test Suites: The framework supports separate test suites with dedicated bootstrap files. By default, it covers unit, integration, functional, and acceptance test suites, each with its corresponding bootstrap file.
- Custom Setups: You can create separate plugin or theme setups to test compatibility with various WordPress site configurations. Each setup corresponds to a separate testsuite. And if you need a non-standard testsuite, you have the flexibility to implement your custom TestListener, which can handle it seamlessly.
Getting Started with WP Testing
Now, I know you're eager to dive into WP Testing. Here's how to get started:
1. Composer Installation: The easiest way to begin is by installing the framework via Composer. Simply add it as a dependency in your Composer file using the `--dev` tag during dev installs.
```shell
composer require --dev "ArtOfWP/wp-testing"
```
2. Configure PHPUnit: You'll find an example configuration file in the GitHub repo (phpunit.example.conf). This file is where you'll specify your PHPUnit setup, including the bootstrap file.
```xml
<phpunit bootstrap="tests/bootstrap.php" [...]>
```
3. Create Test Suites: To add a testsuite to your PHPUnit setup, you can use this format:
```xml
<testsuites>
<testsuite name="unit">
<directory suffix="Test.php">./tests/unit</directory>
</testsuite>
</testsuites>
```
4. Bootstrap Loading: To load different bootstraps for various test suites, you'll need to add a PHPUnit listener to your configuration file. The BootstrapLoader is a straightforward implementation of a listener for this purpose.
```xml
<listeners>
<listener class="\ArtOfWP\WP\Testing\BootstrapLoader"></listener>
</listeners>
```
The Future of WP Testing
As we navigate the evolving landscape of WordPress development, I believe there's room for more improvements in test setups, especially concerning integration tests. I'm also determined to reduce dependencies on the default WordPress test framework. If you have any ideas or questions about WP Testing or WordPress development in general, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
Exploring WordPress Quality Assurance
In addition to my work on WP Testing, I've been pondering the quality assurance aspects of WordPress. A recent post on CMS Critic sparked some valuable discussions about end-users' challenges in selecting and installing plugins that don't quite deliver as expected.
To address this, I've brainstormed several ideas for WordPress.org and the community to consider:
1. Automatic Checks on WordPress.org: Implement automatic code validation to detect minor issues in plugins and themes. However, be cautious about false positives.
2. Manual Checks on WordPress.org: A more thorough but resource-intensive solution would involve manual testing by a group of experts before plugins and themes are available to users. This curated approach ensures higher quality.
3. Automatic Checks on End-Users' Sites: Enable WordPress to report activation and runtime issues to WordPress.org. This information, combined with user feedback, can help identify problematic plugins and themes.
4. Activation Issues: Detect activation errors and send reports to WordPress.org. If a plugin generates frequent activation errors, it can be flagged as potentially broken.
5. Runtime Issues: Extend the error handling system to catch runtime errors, identify the source plugin, and send reports to WordPress.org. Plugins generating critical errors could be marked as problematic.
In conclusion, I'm not only dedicated to improving the development experience but also passionate about enhancing the quality assurance process within the WordPress ecosystem. Together, we can create a more reliable and enjoyable WordPress experience for everyone.
Feel free to share your thoughts, ideas, or questions in the comments below. Let's embark on this WordPress journey together!