document the defaultTest parameter to unittest.main()

[cjerdonek]

BPO	17282
Nosy	@ezio-melotti, @bitdancer, @voidspace, @cjerdonek
Files	default_test_3.4.patch default_test_2.7-3.3.patch

^{Note: these values reflect the state of the issue at the time it was migrated and might not reflect the current state.}

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GitHub fields:

assignee = None
closed_at = <Date 2014-01-02.18:46:34.674>
created_at = <Date 2013-02-24.00:14:54.708>
labels = ['easy', 'type-feature', 'docs']
title = 'document the defaultTest parameter to unittest.main()'
updated_at = <Date 2014-01-02.18:46:34.672>
user = 'https://github.com/cjerdonek'

bugs.python.org fields:

activity = <Date 2014-01-02.18:46:34.672>
actor = 'r.david.murray'
assignee = 'docs@python'
closed = True
closed_date = <Date 2014-01-02.18:46:34.674>
closer = 'r.david.murray'
components = ['Documentation']
creation = <Date 2013-02-24.00:14:54.708>
creator = 'chris.jerdonek'
dependencies = []
files = ['30096', '30097']
hgrepos = []
issue_num = 17282
keywords = ['patch', 'easy']
message_count = 4.0
messages = ['182839', '188230', '207180', '207182']
nosy_count = 7.0
nosy_names = ['ezio.melotti', 'r.david.murray', 'michael.foord', 'chris.jerdonek', 'docs@python', 'python-dev', 'kyle.roberts']
pr_nums = []
priority = 'normal'
resolution = 'fixed'
stage = 'resolved'
status = 'closed'
superseder = None
type = 'enhancement'
url = 'https://bugs.python.org/issue17282'
versions = ['Python 2.7', 'Python 3.3', 'Python 3.4']

[cjerdonek]

This issue is to document the defaultTest parameter to unittest.main():

http://docs.python.org/dev/library/unittest.html#unittest.main

Note that it is not enough simply to say that *defaultTest* is a "default test name or iterable of test names." The documentation should also say when *defaultTest* is used based on the value of the *module* and *argv* arguments, etc.

This issue is an offshoot of bpo-15132.

[kyleroberts]

I've uploaded a patch documenting defaultTest in the latest branch and also in the previous branches.

[python-dev]

New changeset 045e7a587f3c by R David Murray in branch '3.3':
bpo-17282: Document unittest.main defaultTest argument.
http://hg.python.org/cpython/rev/045e7a587f3c

New changeset 69b5f6924553 by R David Murray in branch '2.7':
bpo-17282: Document unittest.main defaultTest argument.
http://hg.python.org/cpython/rev/69b5f6924553

New changeset 1bbf8c263d3c by R David Murray in branch 'default':
Merge and update bpo-17282: Document unittest.main defaultTest argument.
http://hg.python.org/cpython/rev/1bbf8c263d3c

[bitdancer]

Thanks Kyle. I reworded it a bit to clarify the precedence of argv over defaultTest. (Also FYI your patch had stray spaces at the ends of the lines.)