# mynyml/watchr

Modern continuous testing (flexible alternative to Autotest)

Repository: https://github.com/mynyml/watchr
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/watchr
Homepage: http://mynyml.com/ruby/flexible-continuous-testing
Language: Ruby
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Last push: 2011-10-15T01:23:48+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 32/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 6224, "days_push": 5437, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1272, forks 74 (observed 2026-08-28T04:04:12.196306+00:00)

## What it is
Watchr is a Ruby command-line tool that monitors a directory tree and triggers user-defined actions whenever observed files change, most commonly for continuous testing. It is a flexible, framework-agnostic alternative to Autotest, driven by simple Ruby scripts using a `watch(pattern, &action)` DSL.

## Use cases
- run tests automatically whenever a file is saved
- watch a directory tree and trigger a command on file changes
- continuous testing without being locked into a specific test framework
- flexible autotest alternative for Ruby projects
- rebuild or rerun scripts on file modification
- monitor files across Linux, macOS, BSD, Solaris, and Windows

## When to choose
- you want continuous testing that works with any test framework or Ruby interpreter
- you need a simple, scriptable file-watching tool with a tiny DSL
- you want to replace Autotest with something more flexible and framework-agnostic

## When to avoid
- you need an actively maintained tool - the latest release dates to 2011
- you need file watching in a non-Ruby ecosystem with first-class support
- you want modern features like parallel test runs or rich reporting

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: abandoned
- function: testing, cli, developer-tools
- domain: testing, developer-tools
- platform: windows, bsd, cli, ruby
- tags: continuous-testing, file-watcher, autotest-alternative, ruby-gem, file-monitoring, command-line, automation, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- mynyml/watchr (main) score 32

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:12.196306+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T05:03:18.491945+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/mynyml/watchr (fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:12.196306+00:00, sha 5299ed13a02c)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.