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Well, yes, if you take it to the ship first vs what amounts to waterfall extreme, there will be profound differences in the code. I suppose if you make it your

Well, yes, if you take it to the ship first vs what amounts to waterfall extreme, there will be profound differences in the code. I suppose if you make it your mission to analyze code to determine whether or not your programmers are using TDD, you could figure it out. But then we're getting into a pretty artificial situation. Who cares if the code is clean and the project is successful? TDD may be a useful way to get to clean code for /some/, perhaps /most/. But this is not true of /all/. I'm not arguing against its usefulness for someone like you. That's silly, you obviously value it. I'm arguing against the "moral imperative," which is utter nonsense. TDD is neither necessary nor sufficient for success, and we should stop pretending that it is. I create a class, it has an interface with a purpose, and I test that interface. I don't write tests first, and I don't have trouble writing tests after I write the code. I organize my thoughts on pen and paper, and use very light documentation to test the size and purpose of my methods. The projects I work on are successful, everyone's happy. This is true of several other programmers I work with on a daily basis, but not all. Several also practice TDD, and it works for them.

jdlshore 14y ago
You're moving the goalposts. I didn't say anything (and I'm pretty sure I never have said) about TDD being a moral imperative. Nor did I say it was necessary for success, nor sufficient. I said "It's reasonable for a job to require TDD... because the TDD workflow results in a qualitatively different code base." I chose an artificial example of how workflows change code to make the point obvious, but the real-world effect of TDD is night-and-day obvious in my experience. I value that difference to the point where TDD skill is a core part of my hiring decisions. I'm okay with you making different choices.
- thomasmeeks 14y ago
  Well, sure, I'm not sure I really care about what particular employers require of their employees. I think it is silly, but I doubt you care much about what I think, either. It was a minor point to me (not to you), which is why we've diverged I think. My moral imperative comment is toward the overall topic, not you.

jdlshore 14y ago

You're moving the goalposts. I didn't say anything (and I'm pretty sure I never have said) about TDD being a moral imperative. Nor did I say it was necessary for success, nor sufficient. I said "It's reasonable for a job to require TDD... because the TDD workflow results in a qualitatively different code base." I chose an artificial example of how workflows change code to make the point obvious, but the real-world effect of TDD is night-and-day obvious in my experience. I value that difference to the point where TDD skill is a core part of my hiring decisions. I'm okay with you making different choices.

thomasmeeks 14y ago
Well, sure, I'm not sure I really care about what particular employers require of their employees. I think it is silly, but I doubt you care much about what I think, either. It was a minor point to me (not to you), which is why we've diverged I think. My moral imperative comment is toward the overall topic, not you.