Logo: Relish

  1. Sign in

Project: RSpec Expectations 3.9

Publisher: RSpec

implicit docstrings

When you use rspec-expectations with rspec-core, RSpec is able to auto-generate the
docstrings for examples for you based on the last expectation in the example. This can be
handy when the matcher expresses exactly what you would write in your example docstring,
but it can also be easily abused. We find that the freeform nature of the docstring provides
a lot of value when used well (e.g. to document the "why" of a particular behavior), and you
lose that kind of flexibility when you rely on the matcher to generate the docstring for you.

In general, we recommend only using this feature when the matcher aligns exactly with the
docstring you would write. Even then, many users prefer the explicitness of the full
docstring, so use this feature with care (if at all).

Scenarios
run passing examples
Given
a file named "implicit_docstrings_spec.rb" with: 
RSpec.describe "Examples with no docstrings generate their own:" do
  specify { expect(3).to be < 5 }
  specify { expect([1,2,3]).to include(2) }
  specify { expect([1,2,3]).to respond_to(:size) }
end
When
I run rspec ./implicit_docstrings_spec.rb -fdoc
Then
the output should contain "is expected to be < 5"
And
the output should contain "is expected to include 2"
And
the output should contain "is expected to respond to #size"
run failing examples
Given
a file named "failing_implicit_docstrings_spec.rb" with: 
RSpec.describe "Failing examples with no descriptions" do
  # description is auto-generated per the last executed expectation
  specify do
    expect(3).to equal(2)
    expect(5).to equal(5)
  end

  specify { expect(3).to be > 5 }
  specify { expect([1,2,3]).to include(4) }
  specify { expect([1,2,3]).not_to respond_to(:size) }
end
When
I run rspec ./failing_implicit_docstrings_spec.rb -fdoc
Then
the output should contain "is expected to equal 2"
And
the output should contain "is expected to be > 5"
And
the output should contain "is expected to include 4"
And
the output should contain "is expected not to respond to #size"

Last published over 1 year ago by Jon Rowe.