Test-Driven Development (TDD) is at the heart of low-defect agile software development, enabling incremental development and emergent design without degrading quality. By allowing software teams to create comprehensive regression tests that immediately pinpoint tiny errors, it gives them confidence to enhance functionality with incredible speed. Essential Test-Driven Development will help you discover how TDD helps developers take back the joy of software development, as you glimpse of the future of TDD and software development as a profession. Leading TDD coach and instructor Rob Myers shares his experiences, suggestions, and stories, plus focused and fun self-directed Java, C#, C++, and JavaScript lab work from his acclaimed TDD course.
Throughout, this guide reflects the author's unsurpassed experience practicing TDD on real production code and helping hundreds of teams adopt TDD practices. Myers addresses both human motivations and technical challenges, and stresses benefits to individual programmers, not just companies. He also offers exceptional coverage of massive refactoring and legacy code, reflecting the actual realities most developers face.
Table of Contents:
- 1. The Trouble with Software
- 2. A Brief History of TDD
- 3. This is Your Brain on TDD
- 4. Test-Driven Development Overview
- 5. The Recipe
- 6. The Fab Five
- 7. Relentless Refactoring
- 8. Test-First 9. First Labs
- 10. Mocks and Fakes
- 11. The Legacy Code Challenge
- 12. Top Ten Challenges and Pitfalls, and What to Do About Them.
- 13. Advanced TDD
- 14. ATDD and BDD
- 15. Emergent Design
- 16. Black Swans
- 17. The Future of TDD
- 18. Appendices and Extras
- 19. Other Helpful Agile Engineering Practices
About the Author :
Rob Myers is a seasoned software developer and instructor with four decades of experience. He has trained and mentored teams worldwide in TDD and Agile practices, helping organizations of all sizes achieve lasting software excellence.
Review :
"Rob Myers's modern, practical take on TDD gets your hands dirty quickly while keeping them safe with clear rules, smart safety nets, and hard-earned wisdom from decades of real experience. Engaging, entertaining, and relevant to every developer."
--Jeffrey J. Langr, veteran software developer and author
"After decades of TDD, Rob delivers what we've needed--a book treating test code as a first-class citizen. His insights on test smells and AI-assisted coding give a glimpse into our future where clean test specifications replace architectural debates. Multi-language examples show TDD's universal principles. A must-have reference."
--Shane Duan, Director of Engineering, Rockfish Data, Inc.
"Essential Test-Driven Development is a must-read for anyone who cares about writing quality, confident code. I've seen Rob's approach in action and witnessed firsthand the remarkable impact effective TDD can have. His passion, clarity, and practical guidance make this book an invaluable resource for any serious software professional."
--Jorgen Hesselberg, author of Unlocking Agility; co-founder of Comparative Agility
"Do you want to feel confident while you develop? Do you want to earn the trust of your colleagues and demonstrate trustworthiness to them? Here's how, from someone who has been doing it for a quarter century."
--Kent Beck
"Easily the best book on TDD I've seen in over a decade. Myers avoids the empty sloganeering that treats TDD as an aftermarket bolt-on to old-school approaches, and his design detours take the reader deep into the meat of the subject."
--GeePaw Hill, independent software development technical coach
"Rob brings Test-Driven Development back to what it truly is: a craft that connects thinking, quality, and joy. This book inspires developers and teams alike to embrace sustainable technical excellence as the foundation for meaningful, agile co-creation. Highly recommended."
--Björn Jensen, CST, CTC, CEC & AKT
"TDD was a steep learning curve for my teams. And once learned it gave us the unicorn magic. I love how this book lowers that learning curve. You can easily work through it with Rob as your virtual pair."
--Lisa Crispin, consultant and author
