Python's unittest.py was a direct port from Java's JUnit. More recently, a Google contribution to unittest.py added a huge number of self.assertThisThatOrTheOt

Python's unittest.py was a direct port from Java's JUnit. More recently, a Google contribution to unittest.py added a huge number of self.assertThisThatOrTheOther() methods. The new methods were designed to have better diagnostic messages for test failures (i.e. diffs between expected and actual). Much needed test discovery was added by Michael Foord. Third-party testing modules like py.test and nose.py are popular substitutes for unittest.py. They use a light-weight syntax and are joy to use.