RobsHouse.net

Dries has thrown down the gauntlet:

the only way to [...] experience the true benefits, is to take testing to the extreme. There is no middle ground. If we want to be serious about testing, we need to enforce, not just encourage, testing in the Drupal 7 development cycle and beyond.

I couldn't agree more and am thrilled that Drupal is moving so strongly in the direction of mandatory and automated testing. The problem at the moment, however, is that too few people know how to test and fewer yet know what tools to use when using Drupal. If you are one of the legions of developers who have often though "oh, that's something I intend to learn sometime", the time has arrived. Here are some resources that should help you get started.

1. Read this one-page article called Six Rules of Unit Testing. You'll have some good guidelines to start out with.
2. Read my article on installing the Drupal SimpleTest framework. You'll have your testing environment set up and will never have to overcome that hurdle again.
3. Read Webchick's followup article on integrating SimpleTest into your development cycle. Your programming efficiency will start to increase immediately.
4. Read the extensive documentation on Drupal.org.
5. Join the Unit Testing Group and join like-minded developers.
6. Attend one of the three planned presentations at the Boston Drupalcon, 2008. Most likely these will be consolidated into one presentation, so watch for the final Drupalcon schedule.
7. Buy the book Beautiful Code and read Chapter 7, "Beautiful Tests", by Alberto Savoia. Read the rest of the book, too. You'll be inspired.

Please use the comments to point out other good and relevant testing resources.