[Python-Dev] test failures on Debian unstable (original) (raw)

Martin v. Loewis martin@v.loewis.de
24 Nov 2002 12:01:41 +0100

Tim Peters <tim.one@comcast.net> writes:

> I don't like the expected-skip mechanism at all.

I love it: it solves real problems on Windows.

It is unfortunate that it solves these problems only on Windows.

> Why is it expected that testbz2 works on Linux?

I don't know that it is.

So should it be? If not: Why is it expected that test_bz2 fails on Linux?

Whether the test passes or fails simply has nothing to what system you run it on.

To solve the real problem on Windows, it seems that a list "tim_has_seen_this_test" would be sufficient.

> It won't work if you don't have the libraries.

If so, put it in the expected-skip list for Linux.

Sure, but that holds for nearly every test requiring extension modules: if some library isn't there, the module doesn't work.

Then it's an expected skip on platforms where that's a choice, in the sense the phrase is intended. "expected skip" may be a poor name for it, although it makes literal sense on Windows.

Again: Unfortunately only on Windows. If the test is added to the skip list, the a potential problem will be hidden: it may be that the test ought to pass on a certain installation, but doesn't because of a real bug in Python. So adding the test into the skipped list on grounds of the library potentially unavailable hides real problems.

Regards, Martin