How to write a good bug report

If you are just starting to work on bug tracking, issue management, and web development, then bug reporting is definitely a task that you cannot avoid. In today's article, we will try to answer this question from multiple perspectives. Believe me, the content is quite interesting.

We're always discussing bug reports...

…but rarely explain what a bug report actually is.

I found over 1,000 results on Usersnap via Google and 183 blog posts on this topic covering a lot of the dos and don’ts of bug tracking.

[[164690]]

However, we still haven't answered the most important question. But the topic of bug reporting is still quite rich, no doubt.

Anyway, we are finally getting down to business today… it’s good news after all, right?

What exactly is a bug report?

So let’s first answer the question, “What exactly is a bug report?”

To find the answer, we need to understand several related concepts, including what is a bug, what is a bug report, and bug reporting software.

What is a bug?

In software development, engineering, or web construction, bug does not refer to a tiny insect, but a completely different concept.

According to Wikipedia, a software bug (or just 'bug') is defined as:

“A software bug is an error, defect, malfunction or flaw in a computer program or system that causes the software to behave incorrectly or unexpectedly, or to operate in a manner different from that for which it was designed.”

In short, this means:

A software bug is an error, defect, malfunction or flaw that may cause incorrect or unexpected operating results.

Basically, a software bug is an element that does not conform to the design idea.

Why is it called a "bug"? - The origin of the name bug

You may be wondering, why are software errors called bugs? This is a good question, because the use of the word "bug" to describe software errors or failures can be traced back to 1945. At the end of 1945, a technical team at Harvard University discovered some failure points in the Relay70 device. They eventually found that the problem was caused by some dead bugs.

The bug definition entry states, "This is the first documented bug in history."

Therefore, in theory, a bug is an element that is inconsistent with the design idea.

However, what if the design itself is problematic? Is this a bug? As you can see, there is a lot of room for discussion on the answer to this question.

Whether you are a developer, designer or software user, you must have encountered bugs in real life, or even caused them yourself.

What is a bug report?

So a new question arises: What is a bug report?

When bugs occur, people discover them and report them (document and send them) to the technical team responsible for fixing the error or glitch.

According to Yegor, bug reports "should explain the specific problem that occurred with the product."

He further added that bug reports should follow this basic pattern:

“My situation is like this, and I wish it was like that, so please fix it.”

Sounds simple, right? But it's not - many bug reports don't say what they need to say.

Imagine if we encounter a bug ourselves and need to send a report, what information would we include? The answer may vary from person to person.

In the past, bug reports were long forms with lots of fields and data requests. What is the priority of the bug? How do I describe the problem? What parts does it consist of? What version of the browser was used? And so on…

Good bug reports vs. bad bug reports

So there must be good bug reports and bad bug reports - what's the difference? Why are there so many bad bug reports?

I have collected some related statements to help you make a clearer distinction:

· Good bug reports contain the information necessary to reproduce and fix the problem.

· Poor bug reports do not include the information necessary to reproduce and fix the problem.

· A good bug report can effectively help the bug reporter communicate with the bug receiver.

· Bad bug reports are long and difficult to communicate between the two parties

· Good bug reports get resolved as quickly as possible

· Bad bug reports never get fixed

· Good bug reports will be sent directly to the relevant person in charge

· Bad bug reports don’t point to the right person

· Good bug reports are concise

· Poor reporting lacks essential information

· Good bug reports conform to the submission guidelines

· A bad bug report may be submitted in many ways, but it just doesn't meet the existing standards (tip: please try not to send bug reports via Weibo)

· Good bug reports establish common ground for collaboration

· Poor bug reporting prevents collaboration

So, let’s summarize the above content to answer today’s topic: “What is a bug report?”

Bug reporting is the storage of all the information needed to record, report, and fix problems in software or on a website. And ideally, it should be done as efficiently as possible.

Closing Statement

In short, we have learned about bugs, bug reports, and bug reporting systems. However, this is just the basics. The road from bugs to no bugs is still long and bumpy - comrades, come on!

Original link: How to make a good bug report

[Translated by 51CTO. Please indicate the original translator and source as 51CTO.com when reprinting on partner sites]