GERT: an empirical reliability estimation and testing feedback tool

Software testing is an integral part of the software development process. Some software developers, particularly those who use the Extreme Programming test-driven development practice, continuously write automated tests to verify their code. We present a tool to complement the feedback loops created by continuous testing. The tool combines static source code metrics with dynamic test coverage for use throughout the development phase to predict a reliability estimate based on a linear combination of these values. Implemented as an open source plug-in to the Eclipse IDE, the tool facilitates the rapid transition between unit test case completions and testing feedback. The color-coded results highlight inadequate testing efforts as well as weaknesses in overall program structure. To illustrate the tool´s efficacy, we share the results of its use on university software engineering course projects.