Lessons from Testing the Voice Button Component

Testing components can sometimes be a rollercoaster, and my recent experience with testing the VoiceButton component in my project was certainly a ride full of unexpected turns. In this blog post, I want to share what I encountered, the challenges I faced, and some insights that I hope might help others who are working on similar projects.

Setting the Scene: Voice Button

The VoiceButton component is a part of an interactive chatbot interface that allows users to interact with the bot using their voice. My goal was to write unit tests for this component to ensure it renders properly and behaves as expected when users interact with it. Specifically, I needed to validate that it changes state (toggle on/off) when clicked and reflects those changes visually.

The journey started with the VoiceButton tests, and while I initially hoped to use the same approach as other button components, this proved to be more challenging than expected.

Challenges with VoiceButton Tests

While I referenced tests from similar components, like the AudioButton, the VoiceButton seemed to have a mind of its own. No matter how carefully I wrote the tests, they would consistently fail, specifically in checking the state toggling and style changes.

• Failing Tests and Debugging Loop: The tests for the VoiceButton consistently failed, indicating that the expected style or class change didn't occur after the button was clicked. The message was clear: the button remained in the "disabled" state when I expected it to be "enabled."

• Console Logs and Debugging: I added console logs to trace the events and state changes during the test, but the logs showed that, despite simulating a click, the button state didn't update as expected in the test environment. I tried adjusting timeouts, tweaking how the button was clicked (using fireEvent.click() or fireEvent.mouseDown()), but the issue persisted.

Moving Forward

For now, I have tests in place that ensure the VoiceButton renders properly and shows the initial state as expected. While I referenced the AudioButton approach, I didn't write or fully test the AudioButton itself. The VoiceButton tests are more basic due to the issues I encountered.

I plan to revisit the VoiceButton tests later with fresh ideas and potentially refactor the component to make it easier to test. One consideration is to split out complex logic into smaller, isolated parts that can be tested independently.

Testing can often feel like a frustrating loop of trial and error, especially when dealing with UI components. But every failure teaches you something new, and even a small success—like getting the VoiceButton to render correctly—is progress worth celebrating.

Final Thoughts

This was my first time participating in such a big, complex project, and it was also the last day of Hacktoberfest when I worked on it. I didn't complete four pull requests this time, but I learned a lot about the challenges of testing complex components. Next time, I plan to start earlier and use this experience to improve my skills further.