The Object Test Bench
• Another useful feature of Visual Studio 2005 is the Object Test Bench (OTB).
• Using the OTB, you are able to create an instance of a type and invoke its members at design time.
• This can be useful when you want to test a new type without needing to step through dozens of break
points to hit the code you want.
• This is also helpful when you wish to test the functionality of a type within a .NET *.dll (no need to
build a separate test client!).
• In some ways, the OTB can be seen as an upgraded GUI version of the Visual Studio .NET
Intermediate Window.
• Do be aware the Visual Studio 2005 still supports a ‘Quick Console’ for a similar purpose.
• You can activate the OTB in various ways:
• Via the View | Other Windows menu of the IDE.
• By right clicking on a type within the class designer and selecting Create Instance / Invoke method.
• By right click on a type from Class View and selecting Create Instance / Invoke method.
• Once you have created a type, you are able to invoke its members visually via the OTB window:
• Do be aware that the OTB does not provide a way to establish an event handler for a given event.
• Therefore, if you invoke a method which fires back an event, you may trigger a runtime
NullReferenceException!
• However, this will not break your OTB session; you can just dismiss the exception and continue as
before.
• Another useful feature of Visual Studio 2005 is the Object Test Bench (OTB).
• Using the OTB, you are able to create an instance of a type and invoke its members at design time.
• This can be useful when you want to test a new type without needing to step through dozens of break
points to hit the code you want.
• This is also helpful when you wish to test the functionality of a type within a .NET *.dll (no need to
build a separate test client!).
• In some ways, the OTB can be seen as an upgraded GUI version of the Visual Studio .NET
Intermediate Window.
• Do be aware the Visual Studio 2005 still supports a ‘Quick Console’ for a similar purpose.
• You can activate the OTB in various ways:
• Via the View | Other Windows menu of the IDE.
• By right clicking on a type within the class designer and selecting Create Instance / Invoke method.
• By right click on a type from Class View and selecting Create Instance / Invoke method.
• Once you have created a type, you are able to invoke its members visually via the OTB window:
• Do be aware that the OTB does not provide a way to establish an event handler for a given event.
• Therefore, if you invoke a method which fires back an event, you may trigger a runtime
NullReferenceException!
• However, this will not break your OTB session; you can just dismiss the exception and continue as
before.
Object Test Bench
Table of Contents
Copyright (c) 2008. Intertech, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This information is to be used exclusively as an
online learning aid. Any attempts to copy, reproduce, or use for training is strictly prohibited.
online learning aid. Any attempts to copy, reproduce, or use for training is strictly prohibited.
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