Eventful October: Expansion, Sporting Success, and Exciting Plans for November!
(polish version below)
October was eventful, and looking at it from the perspective of the beginning of another month, we have a sense that each of the things we experienced was (and still is) very significant. We started with a trip to Warsaw, where we participated in the #PAIHBusinessForum at PGE Narodowy. We have been working hard on expansion for several years now, and participating in the Forum helped us gain a lot of knowledge in this area.
A few days later, we were in Wrocław, and although we couldn’t reveal the purpose at the time, today we can officially say that we opened an office in Germany in October. We welcome Andżelika and Adrian to our team, who are responsible for developing our branch in this country.
There were also sporting successes, as our Team Leader Mariusz ran 103km and 3300m uphill. Time of 16h 45min and 4th place in his age category. What are our plans for November? We will talk about that soon, but one thing is certain – it won’t be boring!
W październiku działo się sporo, a patrząc na to przez pryzmat początku kolejnego miesiąca, mamy poczucie, że każda z rzeczy, którą żyliśmy, była (i nadal jest) bardzo istotna. Rozpoczęliśmy od podróży do Warszawy, gdzie wzięliśmy udział w #PAIHBusinessForum w PGE Narodowy. Od kilku lat mocno pracujemy nad ekspansją, a udział w Forum pomogło nam zdobyć sporo wiedzy w tym temacie.
Kilka dni później byliśmy we Wrocławiu, i choć wtedy nie mogliśmy zdradzić, w jakim celu, dzisiaj możemy to już oficjalnie powiedzieć – w październiku otworzyliśmy biuro w Niemczech. W naszym zespole witamy Andżelikę i Adriana, którzy są odpowiedzialni za rozwój naszej fili w tym kraju.
Nie zabrakło także sukcesów sportowych, ponieważ nasz Team Leader Mariusz przebiegł 103 km i 3300m uphill. Wszystko w czasie16h 45min i 4 miejscem w kategorii wiekowej.
Jakie mamy plany na listopad? O tym będziemy mówić już wkrótce, ale jedno jest pewne – nie będzie nudno!
Author: softwareintuser1231
Date: 2 November 2023
New York, Dublin, projects, entertainment & sports
Hello everyone!
In a moment, we will be welcoming a new month, so we want to share our September achievements with you. September was a very productive month; our team traveled extensively. We explored nearly half the globe, from Europe to the dream-fulfilling America. We’ve also achieved success in the UK; our company’s presence at the Tech Connect Live trade show in Ireland generated significant interest. In addition to that, our team enjoys entertainment, from relaxing vacations on Bulgarian beaches to events like IAAPA EXPO Vienna. There were also sporting achievements; our CEO, Michał, completed the “Marathon of the Three Lakes” in 5 hours, 18 minutes, and 4 seconds.
New York
We have opened 2 offices in Canada (Toronto) and the USA (New York). Our company branch has reached the city of New York, and we probably don’t need to explain to anyone what a tremendous achievement that is. Going back to the beginnings of our company, we can safely describe it as a massive success. In connection with this, our CEO, Michał Świderski, visited New York, and Times Square proudly welcomed him. In North America, we are engaged in financial services such as risk management and compliance.
Dublin
We were also present at the prestigious Tech Connect Live trade show in Dublin. Our booth and our company’s collaboration proposals garnered significant interest. The landscapes of Ireland left a tremendous impression on us, both in terms of their natural beauty and diversity. It was an amazing experience.
Projects
Throughout September, our CMO, Grzegorz, led the “Get to know Softint projects” campaign. Grzegorz shared information with you and illustrated how our fantastic projects looked like!
Entertainment
Our company provides its employees with company housing in sunny Bulgaria. Thanks to this, we can refresh our minds and recharge our batteries before continuing with our work. Vienna was an incredible adventure for us, full of experiences, amazing entertainment, and considerable excitement. The IAAPA EXPO Vienna trade show holds special memories for us, where we combined learning, company development, and great fun.
Sports
The “Marathon of the Three Lakes” for us was just another day. Our CEO secured the 29th place with a time of 5 hours, 18 minutes, and 4 seconds, out of 338 participants. It’s been almost two weeks since the race, and we are still full of admiration for the achieved result.
Author: softwareintuser1231
Date: 3 October 2023
TechConnect Live in Dublin
September is a time for new actions – that’s the case for us too! We started this month by participating in the TechConnect Live in Dublin. We are surrounded by over 70 exhibitors, 4 stages with speakers, and workshop boots.
TechConnect Live is Ireland’s largest annual business and technology exhibition for Micro, SME and Enterprise level companies. The event, which is supported by Ibec and the Small Firms Association (SFA) creates a marketplace for a wide range of SMEs experiencing rapid growth. It’s estimated that SME’s account for 99.8 percent of all active businesses here in Ireland.
We are very glad that we could be a part of this event. Thank you for the invitation and the opportunity to collaborate. It was a great honor and satisfaction for us to contribute to the success of this event. We hope that we were able to meet expectations and add value for all participants. We would be happy to participate in future events and continue our cooperation!
Author: softwareintuser1231
Date: 26 September 2023
Internships, integration and new members – July was quite intense
Holidays are a time for rest, and for some, it’s the beginning of adventure and gaining their first experience in the profession of development. That’s how it is at Software Interactive, where on July 9 young people started their internships. It’s a time of learning and collaboration in a team on an interesting, though challenging project. We are very happy to be able to provide development opportunities to young developers. We enjoy getting to know ambitious individuals who are at the beginning of their journey in the IT world.
In July, we also had a day of rest and team integration. We took advantage of the beautiful weather and various opportunities for active leisure time. Some chose mountain trails, while others went to the swimming pool or for a walk. In the end, all roads led to a barbecue and conversations together 😉
Despite the holiday season, Software Interactive continues to work on projects and development at a steady pace. That’s why we are delighted to welcome new members to our team who will strengthen our project ranks:
- Marcin – Developer C++
- Piotr – Developer C++
- Wiktor – Developer C++
Lately, we have been particularly active in Ireland. We are starting many new collaborations that we are proud of. This is a very important area of our activities, and soon we will tell you a bit more about it.
In Canada, where we recently opened an office, we are also seeing the results of our efforts and work. We are not slowing down and are looking forward to being able to share more details with you soon.
We have completed over 140 projects, and we have professional programmers with years of experience on board. Do you have an idea and need a company that won’t let you down in its realization? You’ve come to the right place! Let’s talk about cooperation!
Author: softwareintuser1231
Date: 1 August 2023
CIO & IT Leaders Summit in Dublin, London Tech Week, Big Data & Analytics Summit Canada in Toronto, Power & Energy Conference in Cork – what else?
June has come to a close, and as we look ahead, we are excited for new plans and goals!
The beginning of June held significant importance for us. Michal and Beata represented our company at the CIO & IT Leaders Summit in Dublin, and it was a great pleasure to be part of those meetings. Our visit to Ireland was even more eventful, as we had the opportunity to meet wonderful individuals. Additionally, one of the meetings focused on collaborating with Tyndall National Institute. We took part at the Power & Energy Conference in Cork too, which was great experience!
Our next destination for June is London Tech Week, where the weather conditions surprised us greatly with an unexpected heatwave, as confirmed by Kasia, who represented us at the event.
What lies ahead? We are looking forward to participating in the Big Data & Analytics Summit Canada in Toronto! Engaging in events worldwide allows us to understand the diverse needs of our clients and provide individually tailored services.
With that, we conclude our travel memories from June, but we know that life is not solely about trips!
However, let’s touch on the topic of travel again, as the holiday season has just begun. For our employees, this means the opportunity to utilize our holiday benefit – apartments in Burgas. How you choose to spend your time in sunny beach is entirely up to you. Would you prefer a week of relaxation on the beach and exploring the charming surroundings of Burgas? Or perhaps you’ll opt for a workation, combining rest and work? The choice is yours!
Our SI-Chat remains at your disposal. We continue to move forward by attentively listening to the happenings in the IT market. We strive to develop with a spirit of technological innovation while maintaining our unwavering commitment to quality.
In June, we completed the recruitment process for this year’s student internships. We were pleasantly surprised to receive 354 applications. From the pool of candidates, we have selected 11 individuals with whom we will soon commence working. See you on July 10!
Author: softwareintuser1231
Date: 30 June 2023
SI CHAT
We are up to date in the world of technological news and we not only enjoy them, but also use them. Recently, informations about the Chat GPT were all around the world. We can see that this is a revolution and a real breakthrough in the area of artificial intelligence. We liked it too, so… We decided to use it and the effects of our work is SI – CHAT!
We think it’s a really great thing and we’re glad that you can use it with us. You can talk in english, and our SI – CHAT, just like us, likes talking to you and will be happy to answer your questions.You can use it in many ways. Do you want to get information, need inspiration or just want to hear a good joke – look at SI – CHAT and talk about it with it 😉
HERE you can chat with SI – CHAT
Author: softwareintuser1231
Date: 23 June 2023
ChatGPT
In this post we want to show you how you can use ChatGPT to speed up writing Unit Tests. The prompts issued to the chat are to illustrate the scenario of cooperation between an experienced developer and a junior performing the task of writing tests. In the text below, we present the developer’s prompts and chat answers, with additional developer comments (bold). These comments are not included in prompts.
Developer: This is my C# class, please write me two example unit tests in xunit for constructor. (*I check if the bot is able to correctly recognize the language and the code fragment I am talking about, I did not give it the name of the method but only the wording constructor (which is the initial method of the class), it recognized everything correctly*)
public class User
{
public User(string sub, string email, int? roleId)
{
EnsureArg.IsNotNullOrWhiteSpace(sub, nameof(sub));
EnsureArg.IsNotNullOrWhiteSpace(email, nameof(email));
Sub = sub;
Email = email;
RoleId = roleId;
StatusId = (int)UserStatusEnum.New;
Photos = new List<UserPhoto>();
Popularity = 0;
}
public void SetUserDetails(UserDetails userDetails)
{
EnsureArg.IsNotNullOrWhiteSpace(userDetails.Name, nameof(userDetails.Name));
EnsureArg.IsNotNullOrWhiteSpace(userDetails.Surname, nameof(userDetails.Surname));
EnsureCanBeUpdated();
UserDetails = userDetails;
}
public void SetProfilePhoto(UserPhoto photo)
{
EnsureArg.IsNotNull(photo, nameof(photo));
EnsureCanBeUpdated();
var userPhoto = new UserPhoto(photo.FilePath, Id);
Photos.Add(userPhoto);
}
public UserPhoto GetPhoto(long photoId)
{
var userPhoto = Photos.FirstOrDefault(p => p.Id == photoId);
if (userPhoto is null)
{
throw new ArgumentException($"User with Id {Id} does not have photo with Id {photoId}");
}
return userPhoto;
}
public void EnsureCanBeUpdated()
{
if (StatusId == (int)UserStatusEnum.Restricted)
{
throw new DomainException("User can't be edited - invalid status");
}
if (IsRemoved)
{
throw new DomainException("User can't be edited - user is removed");
}
}
public void SetUserAsRemoved()
{
IsRemoved = true;
}
public void IncreasePopularity()
{
Popularity++;
}
public long Id { get; set; }
public string Sub { get; }
public string Email { get; private set; }
public int? RoleId { get; private set; }
public long? UserDetailsId { get; set; }
public int StatusId { get; private set; }
public bool IsRemoved { get; private set; }
public long Popularity { get; private set; }
public UserDetails UserDetails { get; private set; }
public List<UserPhoto> Photos { get; private set; }
}
Chat: Here are two sample unit tests for the constructor of the User class:
- A test to verify that the constructor creates a User object with default values for the StatusId, Photos, and Popularity properties:
[Fact]
public void UserConstructor_DefaultValuesAreSet()
{
// Act
var user = new User("sub123", "test@example.com", 1);
// Assert
Assert.Equal(0, user.Popularity);
Assert.Equal((int)UserStatusEnum.New, user.StatusId);
Assert.NotNull(user.Photos);
Assert.Empty(user.Photos);
}- Test to see if the constructor throws an ArgumentException when sub is null:
[Fact]
public void UserConstructor_SubIsNull_ThrowsArgumentException()
{
// Arrange
string sub = null;
string email = "test@example.com";
int? roleId = 1;
// Act & Assert
Assert.Throws<ArgumentException>(() => new User(sub, email, roleId));
}Developer: Modify these tests to use the Shouldly library (*Then I want him to modify the existing code with the library that I use when writing tests, it is worth noting that he will remember this and from now on tests will be created based on this library*)
Chat: Here are the modified unit tests for the constructor of the User class, using the Shouldly library:
- A test to verify that the constructor creates a User object with default values for the StatusId, Photos, and Popularity properties:
[Fact]
public void UserConstructor_DefaultValuesAreSet()
{
// Act
var user = new User("sub123", "test@example.com", 1);
// Assert
user.Popularity.ShouldBe(0);
user.StatusId.ShouldBe((int)UserStatusEnum.New);
user.Photos.ShouldNotBeNull();
user.Photos.ShouldBeEmpty();
}- Test to see if the constructor throws an ArgumentException when sub is null:
[Fact]
public void UserConstructor_SubIsNull_ThrowsArgumentException()
{
// Arrange
string sub = null;
string email = "test@example.com";
int? roleId = 1;
// Act & Assert
Should.Throw<ArgumentException>(() => new User(sub, email, roleId));
}Note: In both cases, you must use the ShouldNotBeNull() method to verify that the Photos property is not null.
Developer: Now write me the tests for the method EnsureCanBeUpdated() (*Now I ask him to create tests for a complex method with two IFs to see if the tests will cover both cases*)
Chat: Here are two example unit tests for the EnsureCanBeUpdated() method of the User class:
- Test to see if the method throws a DomainException when the StatusId property is Restricted
[Fact]
public void EnsureCanBeUpdated_StatusIsRestricted_ThrowsDomainException()
{
// Arrange
var user = new User("sub123", "test@example.com", 1);
user.StatusId = (int)UserStatusEnum.Restricted;
// Act & Assert
Should.Throw<DomainException>(() => user.EnsureCanBeUpdated())
.Message.ShouldBe("User can't be edited - invalid status");
}- Test to see if the method throws a DomainException when the IsRemoved property is true:
[Fact]
public void EnsureCanBeUpdated_IsRemovedIsTrue_ThrowsDomainException()
{
// Arrange
var user = new User("sub123", "test@example.com", 1);
user.IsRemoved = true;
// Act & Assert
Should.Throw<DomainException>(() => user.EnsureCanBeUpdated())
.Message.ShouldBe("User can't be edited - user is removed");
}In both cases, we use the Should.Throw() method to verify that the method threw the expected exception. We then use the Message.ShouldBe() method to validate the content of the exception message.
Developer: Write a positive test for this method (*He also easily recognizes the type of tests he wants from him*)
Chat: Here is an example of a positive unit test for the EnsureCanBeUpdated() method of the User class:
[Fact]
public void EnsureCanBeUpdated_StatusAndIsRemovedAreFalse_DoesNotThrowException()
{
// Arrange
var user = new User("sub123", "test@example.com", 1);
// Act & Assert
Should.NotThrow(() => user.EnsureCanBeUpdated());
}In this test, we check that the EnsureCanBeUpdated() method does not throw an exception when the StatusId and IsRemoved properties have default values (New and false, respectively). We use the Should.NotThrow() method to verify that the method does not throw an exception.
Developer: In the penultimate test you used “user.IsRemoved = true;”. You’d be better off using methods to control class properties if they exist, in this case it’s the SetUserAsRemoved method (*He also suggests to him how he can improve the test if it does not meet my expectations in terms of quality and he notices this error and even justifies my reasoning*)
Chat: You’re right, it’s usually recommended to use public methods to change the state of an object rather than manipulating its properties directly. In this case, to change the value of the IsRemoved property, we should use the SetUserAsRemoved() method. Below is the corrected test:
[Fact]
public void EnsureCanBeUpdated_IsRemovedIsTrue_ThrowsDomainException()
{
// Arrange
var user = new User("sub123", "test@example.com", 1);
user.SetUserAsRemoved();
// Act & Assert
Should.Throw<DomainException>(() => user.EnsureCanBeUpdated())
.Message.ShouldBe("User can't be edited - user is removed");
}By using the SetUserAsRemoved() method, the test is more readable and explicitly states that we are modifying the IsRemoved property by calling the public method.
Developer: What other good practices should I keep in mind while creating tests?
Chat: Here are some good practices for writing unit tests:
- Name the tests in a descriptive and understandable way. Tests should be named so that you know what they are testing, for example “ShouldReturnCorrectResultWhenAddingTwoNumbers”. This will make it easier to understand what the test is testing and why it is important.
- Test individual code units. Unit tests should test single functionalities or methods in isolation from other parts of the code. This way you can ensure that a given code unit works correctly and that problems with other parts of the code do not affect the test results.
- Use assertions to check expected results. Assertions should be used in unit tests to compare the expected results with the actual results of the method or functionality being tested. This makes it quick and easy to detect if your code is working correctly.
- Create various test cases. To ensure that your unit tests are comprehensive, you should create different test cases to test different possible scenarios for your code. For example, you can create tests for different edge cases or test different combinations of inputs.
- Adjust the tests to the level of complexity of the code. Unit tests should be adequate to the complexity of the code. The more complicated the code, the more and more complex tests will be needed. However, the tests should be kept as simple as possible so that they can be easily maintained and changed as the code changes.
- Use tools and test libraries. There are many test tools and libraries that can help you write and run unit tests. Good testing tools should allow you to easily create tests as well as report and detect problems in your code.
- Run tests frequently and regularly. Unit tests should be run frequently and regularly to ensure that your code is working correctly. This allows you to quickly detect bugs and problems in your code and quickly fix them before they affect other parts of your system.
- Test both positive and negative cases. Unit tests should consider both positive and negative cases. Tests
Developer: Will you teach me to write tests, tell me what to do and test me? (*It verifies whether a beginner is able not only to learn everything from him, but also to learn with his help*)
Chat: Of course, I’ll be happy to help you! Below, I’ll give you a quick guide to writing unit tests to help you understand how to write good tests and what to look for.
- Choose the Right Testing Framework The most popular C# unit testing framework today is xUnit. However, there are other tools such as NUnit or MSTest, so it’s worth exploring each one and choosing the one that best suits your needs.
- Write a test The test should be short and focus on one specific aspect of the code. It should contain only one assertion that will check if the result of the code under test is as expected.
- Prepare Test Data Test data should be well prepared and provide full test coverage. Well-written tests should be deterministic, that is, always return the same result for the same input.
- Use the right tools and libraries To write unit tests in C#, use tools such as FakeItEasy to create dummy objects and libraries such as NUnit and xUnit that contain many useful functions to help you write tests.
- Run Test Running a test should be easy with just one click. Tests should be automatically run during the CI/CD process to ensure no code goes into production without making sure all tests pass.
If you want to conduct a short test of your knowledge in the field of writing unit tests, ask for a task and I will try to help you!
Developer: Give me an assignment.
Chat: Of course, here’s the job:
Write a C# class that represents a rectangle. The class should have two properties, length and width, as well as methods to calculate the area and perimeter of a rectangle. Then write a set of unit tests for this class using the NUnit library to validate the area calculation method for various inputs.
Developer: It’s a waste of my time, write me this class and I’ll write tests for it (*But I’m too lazy to write boirplate 😉 so I use it*)
Chat: Here is a class that represents a rectangle:
public class Rectangle
{
public double Width { get; set; }
public double Height { get; set; }
public double GetArea()
{
return Width * Height;
}
public double GetPerimeter()
{
return 2 * (Width + Height);
}
}This class has two properties: Width and Height, and two methods: GetArea and GetPerimeter, which return the area and perimeter of a rectangle, respectively.
Now you can write unit tests for it in the NUnit library.
Developer:
[Fact]
public void Rectangle_CalculateArea()
{
var rectangle = new Rectangle() { Height = 2, Width = 5 };
rectangle.GetArea().ShouldBe(10);
}(*I wrote him my test, which he verifies and additionally, as a top student, he floods me with tests that I could write*)
Chat: Your unit test looks good! You test the GetArea() method on a rectangle with a height of 2 and a width of 5, and then check if the result is 10. This is a good test to start with.
If you want, you can add some other tests that will test the method for different Width and Height values. For example, you can add tests for Width=0 and Height=0, for negative values, for very large values (e.g. Width=double.MaxValue), for floating point values (e.g. Width=0.5), etc.
Here are some examples of some additional tests:
[Fact]
public void Rectangle_CalculateArea_WidthAndHeightAreZero_ReturnsZero()
{
// arrange
var rectangle = new Rectangle() { Height = 0, Width = 0 };
// act
var result = rectangle.GetArea();
// assert
result.ShouldBe(0);
}
[Fact]
public void Rectangle_CalculateArea_WidthOrHeightIsNegative_ThrowsArgumentException()
{
// arrange
var rectangle = new Rectangle() { Height = -2, Width = 5 };
// act/assert
Assert.Throws<ArgumentException>(() => rectangle.GetArea());
}
[Fact]
public void Rectangle_CalculateArea_WidthOrHeightIsVeryLarge_ReturnsInfinity()
{
// arrange
var rectangle = new Rectangle() { Height = double.MaxValue, Width = double.MaxValue };
// act
var result = rectangle.GetArea();
// assert
result.ShouldBe(double.PositiveInfinity);
}
[Fact]
public void Rectangle_CalculateArea_WidthOrHeightIsFractional_ReturnsCorrectResult()
{
// arrange
var rectangle = new Rectangle() { Height = 1.5, Width = 2.5 };
// act
var result = rectangle.GetArea();
// assert
result.ShouldBe(3.75);
}Of course, these are just a few examples, but they show how you can test different scenarios for the GetArea method().
Developer: Let’s go back to my previous User class, you can write me some unit tests for the GetPhoto method()?(*It is worth mentioning here that it remembers the context of the entire conversation, so I can go back to the previous thread I was talking about at any time*)
Chat: Of course, here are sample unit tests for the GetPhoto method():
public class UserTests
{
[Fact]
public void GetPhoto_ValidId_ReturnsCorrectPhoto()
{
// Arrange
var photoId = 1;
var photo = new UserPhoto { Id = photoId, FilePath = "path/to/photo", UserId = 1 };
var user = new User("sub", "email", 1) { Id = 1 };
user.Photos.Add(photo);
// Act
var result = user.GetPhoto(photoId);
// Assert
result.ShouldBe(photo);
}
[Fact]
public void GetPhoto_InvalidId_ThrowsArgumentException()
{
// Arrange
var photoId = 1;
var user = new User("sub", "email", 1) { Id = 1 };
// Act & Assert
Should.Throw<ArgumentException>(() => user.GetPhoto(photoId));
}
}In the first test, we verify that the GetPhoto() method returns the expected UserPhoto object for the correct photoId.
In the second test, we check if the GetPhoto() method throws an ArgumentException for an invalid photoId.
Developer: You didn’t check the content of the exception (*And again, I point out to him what he forgot, I don’t see anything wrong with it because he doesn’t read my mind, but I’m surprised by the simplicity of how I can ask him to change the code he has already generated. It makes me feel like I’m talking to a real developer. It definitely convinces me that it is a revolutionary solution in my daily work. Because monotonous things that used to take me several dozen minutes, today I am able to do in a few seconds. Just ask him the right question.*)
Chat: Indeed, proper exception validation should include checking the content of the exception. This can be done, for example, with the ShouldThrow<>() method of the Shouldly library, e.g.:
[Fact]
public void GetPhoto_ThrowsException_WhenPhotoNotFound()
{
// Arrange
var user = new User("testSub", "testEmail", null);
// Act & Assert
var ex = Should.Throw<ArgumentException>(() => user.GetPhoto(1));
ex.Message.ShouldBe("User with Id 0 does not have photo with Id 1");
}With this test, we make sure that an exception with the expected content is thrown.
