[Python-Dev] barest beginnings of test coverage results

[Skip Montanaro]

I compiled the Python interpreter with the flags necessary to get statement
and branch coverage information then generated coverage files using the GNU
coverage tool, gcov.  If you'd like a peek at the coverage files, have a
look at

    http://www.musi-cal.com/~skip/python/Python/dist/src/

The statement/branch coverage information is for one run of executing
Lib/test/regrtest.py.

Anywhere there is a C source file with coverage info the filename will end
in ".c.gcov".  I will eventually segregate the coverage files into a
parallel tree and not mix them with the build tree.  I would also like to
adjust the regrtest.py stuff to generate statement coverage for .py files
using my trace module: http://www.musi-cal.com/~skip/python/trace.py.

For an example of how far this sort of thing can go, poke around in VTK's
nightly quality dashboard:

    http://public.kitware.com/vtk/quality/MostRecentResults/

The VTK gang has been doing this for a couple years and now displays the
following information:

  * pass/fail and faster/slower summaries of their nightly regression tests
  * code coverage information (using gcc/gcov as I'm doing)
  * all this on eight different Unix platforms each night

Skip