rspec users - Oct 2011 - assert_select - to do negative tests - need help with syntax please :)

Hi all,

  I am trying to figure out how to use assert_select properly.

 When I created a new resource in rails 3 called Brands, the view
specs for brands had a test which read:

    # Run the generator again with the --webrat flag if you want to
use webrat matchers
    assert_select "form", :action => brands_path, :method =>
"post" do
      assert_select "input#brand_name", :name =>
"brand[name]"
      assert_select "input#brand_description", :name =>
"brand[description]"
      assert_select "input#brand_created_by", :name =>
"brand[created_by]"
    end


With my project, I do not want the "created by" attribute
to be set from the new.html.erb entry form.


I read http://content.labnotes.org/assert_select/assert_select.html
and figured I need to use the ''false'' equality operator.

It also says the following:


---------- extract starts --------------
assert_select(selector, *values, equality?, message?) { |elems| ... }
assert_select(element, selector, *values, equality?, message?) { |
elems| ... }
---------- extract ends --------------

Alas, my attempts at using it failed.

For  a spec/statement such as ''assert_select
input#brand_created_by", :name => "brand[created_by]'',
 I would think that input#brand_created_by would be the
''element'' and
the ''selector'' combined.

Since I need to use the ''false'' equality operator,
1) how do i give null to *values? I have tried the following to no
success and kept getting syntax errors:

a) assert_select "input#brand_created_by", :name =>
"brand[created_by]", '''', false   -->
spec/views/brands/
new.html.erb_spec.rb:53: syntax error, unexpected '','',
expecting
tASSOC (SyntaxError) ?me => "brand[created_by]",
'''', false
b)  assert_select "input#brand_created_by", :name =>
"brand[created_by]", nil, false -->
spec/views/brands/new.html.erb_spec.rb:53: syntax error, unexpected
'','', expecting tASSOC (SyntaxError)  ...me =>
"brand[created_by]",
nil, false
c)  assert_select "input#brand_created_by", :name =>
"brand[created_by]", , false --> spec/views/brands/
new.html.erb_spec.rb:53: syntax error, unexpected '','',
expecting
keyword_end (SyntaxError) ...:name => "brand[created_by]", , false


 It looks as if any attempts I make to denote that I have no
''values''
to give to it is not working.

Can someone please tell me what the right syntax is for saying, "i
expect not to see the brand[created_by]" input attribute at all in the
rendered form for adding new entries?

Thank you :)
Gordon

On Oct 12, 2011, at 12:58 AM, Gordon wrote:
> Hi all,
> 
>  I am trying to figure out how to use assert_select properly.
> 
> When I created a new resource in rails 3 called Brands, the view specs for
brands had a test which read:
> 
>    # Run the generator again with the --webrat flag if you want to
> use webrat matchers
>    assert_select "form", :action => brands_path, :method =>
"post" do
>      assert_select "input#brand_name", :name =>
"brand[name]"
>      assert_select "input#brand_description", :name =>
> "brand[description]"
>      assert_select "input#brand_created_by", :name =>
> "brand[created_by]"
>    end
> 
> 
> With my project, I do not want the "created by" attribute to be
set from the new.html.erb entry form.
> 
> I read http://content.labnotes.org/assert_select/assert_select.html and
figured I need to use the ''false'' equality operator.
That''s old. Check out
http://api.rubyonrails.org/classes/ActionDispatch/Assertions/SelectorAssertions.html#method-i-assert_select
for the latest.

<snip/>
> Alas, my attempts at using it failed.
> 
> For  a spec/statement such as ''assert_select
> input#brand_created_by", :name =>
"brand[created_by]'',
> I would think that input#brand_created_by would be the
''element'' and
> the ''selector'' combined.
Correct.
> a) assert_select "input#brand_created_by", :name =>
> "brand[created_by]", '''', false   -->
spec/views/brands/
> new.html.erb_spec.rb:53: syntax error, unexpected '','',
expecting
> tASSOC (SyntaxError) ?me => "brand[created_by]",
'''', false
This is a problem with Ruby argument ordering working against the expressiveness
you''re looking for. Keyword arguments have to come last. So you can
say:

  do_something 1, 2, :a, thing, :b => 3

but you can''t say

  do_something 1, :a, thing, :b => 3, 2

What _will_ work is this:

  assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false

This leaves out the :name argument, but you don''t need it IMO. If you
really want it, you''d have to do this:


  assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false, :name =>
"brand[created_by]"

But that feels really awkward to me, since the negative assertion is expressed
in the middle of the argument list
> Can someone please tell me what the right syntax is for saying, "i
> expect not to see the brand[created_by]" input attribute at all in the
> rendered form for adding new entries?
  rendered.should_not have_selector("input#brand_created_by") # ;)

You need Capybara for that, of course, but I think it''s easier to grok
than:

  assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false

HTH,
David

>
> What _will_ work is this:
>
>  assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false
>
>
Hmmm. Sadly it does not work :( See below:

---------------- extract start -------------------------

     Failure/Error: assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false,
:name =>
"brand[created_by]"
     ArgumentError:
       assertion message must be String or Proc, but Hash was given.
     # (eval):2:in `assert''
     # ./spec/views/brands/new.html.erb_spec.rb:37:in `block (3 levels) in
<top (required)>''
     # ./spec/views/brands/new.html.erb_spec.rb:34:in `block (2 levels) in
<top (required)

---------------- extract end  -------------------------
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL:
<http://rubyforge.org/pipermail/rspec-users/attachments/20111012/59127ff3/attachment.html>

On Oct 12, 2011, at 6:53 AM, Gordon Yeong wrote:
> What _will_ work is this:
> 
>  assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false
This ^^ does not include :name => "..."
> 
> 
> Hmmm. Sadly it does not work :( See below:
> 
> ---------------- extract start -------------------------
> 
>      Failure/Error: assert_select "input#brand_created_by",
false, :name => "brand[created_by]"
This ^^ does include :name => "....".

What happens when you just run

  assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL:
<http://rubyforge.org/pipermail/rspec-users/attachments/20111012/8f523a1e/attachment.html>

>
>
> This ^^ does include :name => "....".
>
> What happens when you just run
>
>   assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false
>
> this runs successfully but how do I do it with the :name? :( I just want to
be complete and explicit :)
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL:
<http://rubyforge.org/pipermail/rspec-users/attachments/20111013/01b4cb5b/attachment.html>

On Oct 13, 2011, at 4:40 AM, Gordon Yeong wrote:
> 
> This ^^ does include :name => "....".
> 
> What happens when you just run
> 
>   assert_select "input#brand_created_by", false
> 
> this runs successfully but how do I do it with the :name? :( I just want to
be complete and explicit :)
I don''t know if you can. Maybe somebody on the Rails list knows.

http://groups.google.com/group/rubyonrails-talk

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL:
<http://rubyforge.org/pipermail/rspec-users/attachments/20111013/b6d5ccf1/attachment.html>

>
> I don''t know if you can. Maybe somebody on the Rails list knows.

If it can''t, it means that people can''t use assert_select to
expect
NOT to find a given element with extra attributes (such as :name)
being defined. If that''s the case, i think assert_select was either
poorly written OR not completed yet. It''s like saying that
"if"
conditional works but "if not" only works to a simple extend only :( I
am sure it can be done.
Can someone please show us how?

See this
https://github.com/rails/rails/blob/master/actionpack/lib/action_dispatch/testing/assertions/selector.rb#L186

seems the syntax is "[name=...]"

On Oct 13, 2011, at 8:56 PM, Gordon wrote:
>> I don''t know if you can. Maybe somebody on the Rails list
knows.
> 
> If it can''t, it means that people can''t use assert_select
to expect
> NOT to find a given element with extra attributes (such as :name)
> being defined. If that''s the case, i think assert_select was
either
> poorly written OR not completed yet. It''s like saying that
"if"
> conditional works but "if not" only works to a simple extend only
:( I
> am sure it can be done.
> Can someone please show us how?
This is the main benefit of should and should_not vs assertions. Virtually every
matcher works in with both should and should_not (unless it''s author
explicitly makes it not work that way).

Again, assert_select is part of the Rails library, not RSpec. Please post this
question to http://groups.google.com/group/rubyonrails-talk and I''m
sure you''ll find someone who uses assert_select and can either help you
figure out how to do this, or help you work towards making it work better.

Cheers,
David
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL:
<http://rubyforge.org/pipermail/rspec-users/attachments/20111014/e7708c44/attachment.html>