I'm wanting to create a test harness using Test::More to test nearly a dozen classes. The problem is that due to the interdependence between classes, substantive tests cannot be written without a number of classes being instantiated at the same time (The classes represent the object model of a database...), so implementing boilerplate code will only be useful as long as I can embed a number of knobs into the interface.

So, what I have dreamed up is to create yet another module which accepts a hash reference as an argument which specifies the class name(s), method(s), & arguments which are then instantiated & connected together -- passing something akin go the following: 

{
    'classname_a' => {
                         'method_a' => [ parameter1, 
                                         parameter2 ],
                         'method_b' => [ parameter1 ],
                         'method_c' => undef
                     },
    'classname_b' => {
                         'method_a' => undef,
                         'method_b' => [ parameter1 ]
                     }
}

[download]
What I haven't resolved is how to decode this structure into the needed syntax. I haven't been able to get past the following: 
sub create {
    my $ref = shift;   
    my @parameters;
    my @objects;
    foreach my $classname (keys %$ref) {
        my $r = new $classname;  # instantiate class
        foreach my $method (keys %{$ref{$classname}}) {
            for my $parameter (keys %{$ref{$classname}{$method}}) {
                push @parameters, ${$ref{$classname}{$method}{$paramet
+er}};
            }
            $r->$method(@parameters);
        }
        push @objects, $r;
    }
    return \@objects;
}

[download]

I'm sure I am not the first to think of trying to take the output from Data::Dumper & recreate the object(s) hierarchy represented.

Any corrections you would suggest for the syntax (or design...) would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

In reply to creating objects via string representations? by Anonymous Monk

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