Testing & modern typing
pytest basics, mocks, type hints, TypedDict, Protocol, and static-checking patterns.
Format Data with Type Hints in Python
Build a validated person dict with modern type hints and optional list handling.
from typing import Any, Dict, List, Optional, Union
JsonValue = Union[str, int, float, bool, None, List["JsonValue"], Dict[str, "JsonValue"]]
def format_person(name: str, age: int, hobbies: Optional[List[str]] = None) -> Dict[str, Any]:
"""Build a person dict with validated typing."""
if not name or age < 0:…Generate Fake User Data with Faker in Python
Use the Faker library to generate realistic fake user profiles with names, emails, phone numbers, and addresses for tests or demos.
from faker import Faker
fake = Faker()
def generate_user():
return {
"name": fake.name(),
"email": fake.email(),
"phone": fake.phone_number(),
"address": fake.address().replace("\n", ", "),
}
if __name__ == "__main__":
user = generate_user()
for key, value in user.ite…How to Flag Unexpected Diff Changes in Python
Compares two snapshot lists, detects unexpected differences, and returns a flag indicating whether the snapshot should be updated.
import difflib
def snapshot_diff(before, after, intentional_changes=None):
"""Compare snapshots and flag only unexpected differences."""
intentional_changes = intentional_changes or set()
diff = list(difflib.unified_diff(before, after, lineterm=""))
has_unexpected = False
for line in diff:
…How to Group Data by Key in Python with Type Hints
Group a list of dictionaries by a specified key using a typed helper function and print a summary of each group.
from typing import Any, Dict, List, TypeVar, Union
T = TypeVar("T")
def group_by(data: List[Dict[str, Any]], key: str) -> Dict[Any, List[Dict[str, Any]]]:
"""Group a list of dictionaries by a given key."""
grouped: Dict[Any, List[Dict[str, Any]]] = {}
for item in data:
value = item.get(key)
…How to Parse Data with Type Hints in Python
A beginner-friendly helper that parses simple dictionary- or list-like strings into typed Python structures using modern typing annotations.
from typing import Any, Dict, List, Union
def parse_data(raw: str) -> Union[Dict[str, Any], List[Any], str]:
"""Parse a simple string into structured data using type hints."""
cleaned = raw.strip()
if not cleaned:
return {}
if cleaned.startswith("{") and cleaned.endswith("}"):
…How to Use Hypothesis Strategies for Lists of Text in Python
Generate random lists of non-empty strings with Hypothesis and verify that joining them with a comma-and-space separator meets expected length and containment invariants.
from hypothesis import given, strategies as st
from hypothesis import example
@given(st.lists(st.text(min_size=1, max_size=10), min_size=1, max_size=5))
def test_joined_string_length(items):
"""Each text is non-empty; a joined string should be at least as long
as the number of items (separator adds character…How to Use Python Type Hints for Beginners
Build a data helper module with basic type hints — Union, Optional, List, Dict, Any, and TypeVar — to make your code clearer and safer.
from typing import Any, Union, Optional, List, Dict, Tuple, Callable, TypeVar
T = TypeVar("T")
def describe(value: Any) -> str:
"""Return a human-readable description of the value's type."""
if isinstance(value, list):
return f"list of {len(value)} items"
elif isinstance(value, dict):
ret…How to Validate Data in Python with Typing Hints
Build a runtime validation helper that checks values against Python type hints like Optional, list, and basic types.
from typing import Any, Optional, Union, TypeVar, get_origin, get_args
T = TypeVar("T")
def validate(value: Any, expected_type: type) -> Optional[str]:
"""Returns an error message if value doesn't match expected_type, else None."""
# Handle Optional[...] types
origin = get_origin(expected_type)
if or…How to use unittest mock side_effect with a sequence in Python
Demonstrates using Mock.side_effect with a list to return different values per call and raise an exception at a specific call in unittest.
import unittest
from unittest.mock import Mock
class TestMockSideEffectSequence(unittest.TestCase):
def test_side_effect_sequence(self):
mock = Mock()
mock.side_effect = [1, 2, 3, Exception("boom")]
self.assertEqual(mock(), 1)
self.assertEqual(mock(), 2)
self.asser…Table-Driven Tests in Python (unittest)
Run a single unittest test against many input cases using a list of tuples and subTest.
import unittest
def add(a, b):
return a + b
class TestAddFunction(unittest.TestCase):
def test_add_with_table(self):
cases = [
(1, 2, 3),
(-1, 1, 0),
(0, 0, 0),
(2, -3, -1),
]
for x, y, expected in cases:
with self.subTest(x…Browse by section
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Testing & modern typing — Python code examples
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