MUTANT: Model-Driven Unit Testing using ASCII-art as Notational Text

There are two established strategies to create test models: Textual notations require developers to mentally reconstruct the involved graph structures ad hoc; maintenance effort and time are increased. Existing visual notations compel developers to switch frequently between different editors; keeping the resulting test artifacts synchronized is complicated by insufficient tool support. In this paper, we propose to specify test models using ASCII-art – a text-based visual notation used by developers in their everyday practices. To outline our vision, we employ a motivating example and discuss challenges such as editing, collaboration, and scalability. The discussion sheds a promising light on the new idea, notably for its usefulness in collaborative and reuse-intensive settings.

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2015
• Where: MODELS
• Authors: Daniel Strüber 0001, Felix Rieger, Gabriele Taentzer
• Keywords: MODELS 2015, Natural Language Processing