# 103: Tentacles Of the Kraken

- Show: [Embedded.fm](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm)
- Published: 2015-06-03
- Length: 1h 09m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken
- Listen: https://makingembeddedsystems.libsyn.com/embedded-ep103mp3

## Summary

Mark VanderVoord, lead maintainer of the open source testing frameworks Unity and CMock, explains how test-driven development (TDD) and mocking help embedded engineers design better code without needing full hardware simulators. He details the workflow of using CMock to generate fake interfaces for hardware drivers like I2C, allowing developers to test logic in a native host environment. VanderVoord also discusses the challenges of maintaining these tools, his new online course on ThrowTheSwitch.org, and the business model of supporting free open source projects through books and classes.

## Chapters

- [0:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken#t=6) Introduction and TDD Philosophy
- [7:10](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken#t=430) Testing Embedded Code on Host vs Target
- [11:35](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken#t=695) How CMock Generates Mocks for Drivers
- [27:52](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken#t=1672) TDD Workflow and Stubbing Corner Cases
- [37:57](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken#t=2277) Choosing Frameworks and the Decidatron
- [23:52](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken#t=1432) Open Source Maintenance and Community
- [49:57](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken#t=2997) Online Course and Book Publishing

## Topics

- [Embedded firmware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/embedded-firmware)
- [EDA & CAD tools](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/eda-and-cad-tools)
- [Open-source hardware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/open-source-hardware)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Unity (tool)
- CMock (tool)
- CppUTest (tool)
- SeedLink (tool)
- ThrowTheSwitch.org (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Ceedling](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2024-11-27-ceedling) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)
- [Writing Firmware without Hardware (featuring Matt Chernosky)](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2021-11-16-writing-firmware-without-hardware-featuring-matt-chernosky) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)
- [Development is Better when it's Test-Driven](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2021-02-16-development-is-better-when-its-test-driven) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)
- [Embedded Systems Engineer Discusses AI-Driven Testing Revolution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ontrack/2025-06-03-embedded-systems-engineer-discusses-ai-driven-testing-revolution) (OnTrack)
- [TDD for UI](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2023-06-23-tdd-for-ui) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-06-03-103-tentacles-of-the-kraken. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Embedded.fm.