C++ Unit testing frameworks: do they all suck?

Well, I've been doing some work with C++ lately and I quickly ran into the need for a unit testing framework. I found an excellent article reviewing the state of C++ unit testing frameworks. My first surprise was how many of them there are. This article alone reviewed six of them. Even if those are all of the 'serious contenders', that's about 3 or 4 frameworks too many.

I was also surprised at how primitive the C++ unit testing frameworks feel. I realized after a while that the lack of dynamic/reflective behavior in C++ is part (or even all) of the issue. Since reflection is not built in, many of the grungy tasks that unit testing frameworks in Java automate for us can't be automated in a C++ unit testing framework. What a shame. We're left using frameworks that feel awkard and leave a lot to be desired.

Then I got to thinking: a number of the C++ wizards around here talk about the power of C++ template programming. It seems to me it ought to be possible to clean up and automate what would normally be done in Java with reflection using templates in C++. I wonder why this hasn't been done. I don't know templates well enough to do it myself, but I hope some wiz at C++ templates does this sometime soon.

For now, I'll keep trudging along with CppUnit, and maybe try out CxxTest.