Bug - The One Word and Mulitple Incorrect Alternatives!?

 

What is Your Word?

I love to meet and collaborate with testers and learn what they are doing and how they are practicing Software Testing, Automation, and solving problems.  When I collaborate, I see testers using different words for communicating what we do.  For example, one will use the word "bug" and few others will use the words "issue", "defect", etc.  What word do you use when you talk about the bug and information you find with help of your testing?

The Word and Alternatives Used

These words are common in the Software Development team when referring to a bug:

• Anamoly: which means abnormality
• Defect: a legal perspective for the unexpected or not wanted or false promise
• Error: a condition due to user input or/and program execution
• Issue: a concern
• Problem: the difference between expected and reality (actual)
• Risk: a potential problem in near time
• Bug: ?

Examples:

• The abnormal growth of bone
• The defective electronic equipment that is used where people are involved
• Error on saving a file with no name
• The team has an issue with the time available
• I have a problem in sharing this report with the customer
• If we do not publish the app today we risk losing users in this season sale
• What's bugging you these days?

If observed, to an extent all the above words have something in common.  That is -- relationship, loss, cost, experience, emotions, expectations, compared to something and evaluated, feeling, and more.

But, that does not mean I can use them casually and interchangeably.  The one thing that is not so common to all is CONTEXT.  All of these have their own context and are different.

Is it a welcoming practice to equate and assign the word "bug" to all the above words?

Bug - Annoyance to whom?

The people and practitioners have different definitions tagged to the word -- Bug.  One word which looks non-technical and asks for attention in addressing it on evaluation is -- annoyance.  I won't bug you anymore!

The bug can be related to annoyance for one who has a relationship with the product or service or company.  The bug is the outcome of my experience when I look for what I need.  The bug is also the relationship that I carry with the product or service that I use.  Since I have a relationship, I feel the experience of annoyance.

I see the bug is not a word of tester or programmer or product owner or anyone in the software development team.  We use the word "bug" to communicate and document the annoyance that a user experiences in using the service we provide.  To extend the view, I can also include the business here.  If it annoys the business in delivering, giving, and making the benefits, it is a bug.  What do you say?

If my annoyance is also the same as the annoyance of an actual user and business, it carries a weightage and importance in the team.  When I say the bug report, we talk on behalf of the product, user, company that is offering service, and the team building the software.

To Sum Up the Word

It is not termed as Anamoly Advocacy, or Defect Advocacy, or Issue Advocacy, or Problem Advocacy, or Risk Advocacy.

It is termed "Bug Advocacy"!

We are trying to avoid or prevent:

• A defective product in the market that can be sued
• A problem with loss and cost for using a product or service
• A problem to business, and
• A user to be away from the [risk of] cost and annoyance for using product or service

It is up to one as a practitioner to use the appropriate word to context.  And, it must start from we Test Engineers / SDETs.  

What word to use is your choice now!  Bug?

Blog Post Update - 23rd August 2021

ISRO declared the mission of GSLV-F10 launch could not be accomplished as intended due to the technical anomaly in Cryogenic upper stage ignition.  Refer to the below image which is a tweet from ISRO mentioning the same.

Why is the word "technical anomaly" used?  And, not a bug, issue, error, or defect?  Instead, the word "anomaly" is used?  

If the word anomaly is considered as

• irregular
• not expected
• deviation from the expected
• abnormal
• something different
• deviation from commonly accepted rules or readings, and
• more...

If closely observed,

• It is a consistent output or outcome that is observed for a time period for a set of input and factors
• Any change in this outcome or output, is treated as a peculiar case?
• Or as abnormal?
• Or as deviation from what is usually observed and recorded?

Why don't we consider this as a bug, then?

• When spoken about the bug
• In the first impression, it is the emotions and experience captured or heard, or recorded
• Necessarily the root cause analysis or initial debug is not done at the time of calling out an experience as a bug

Whereas spoken about anomoly, I learn

• A set of analysis and experiments are done and the outcome is recorded
• This outcome might have shown the consistent behavior for a set of input and factors
• Anything deviation from this outcome for the same set of input and factors is considered as an anomaly?!
• Though it is unexpected, the context i.e. pre-run tests and rational experiments do not let it be treated and term it as a bug in the communication
• Instead, the word anomaly is used in communication

The Not Well Thought Talk

 

That Day

It was in 2016 April at the MITC - Moolya Internal Testing Conference.  I was a Moolya employee then and it was a conference for Moolyans by Moolyans.  I went up to the stage and shared few thoughts of me, then.  Today, when I look at what I spoke, it looks to me as not a talk that I should be doing.

The Talk

I see, my thoughts were not mindful when I spoke that day, and I was blinded.  Yeah, blinded.  This is one of the talks which I keep as an example; so that I do not share my thoughts and talk like this.  Today when I look at me of that day, I look wrong and not sound.  I question myself, "Is that me? Ah! How bad!"

Not Thoughtful, Why?

I see it is not thoughtful for these reasons:

1. It did not reflect the awareness I have on the subject and practice
2. I sent an incorrect message with my short talk for young people who were at the conference
• I should have shared how to look at it than saying what has to be done ignoring the other
• Ignoring the one and doing other is not a beneficial approach in any means
3. I'm a person and with the role who will  influence people in the direction, the work, approach, and delivery
• How can I do this as a leader?
• But a leader will also fail and a leader encounters failures often and frequently
• Leaders deal with the failures than with success often and continue what they have to do
• I failed in my thoughts and talk, that day!

None spoke or shared anything about it.  I'm not sure why.  I myself see it is not right.  Could be they would have received in the intent what I wanted to share.  But, what did I say and how, that's not right.  Ravisuriya, himself cannot take it today and acknowledges it.

What I do today!

I take my time and think before I see an opportunity or when asked to respond.  It is not that I did not think earlier prior to responding.  That day, I did not see how it will be received and interpreted.  

Today for first, I will test if I can receive and acknowledge what I'm communicating.  If this fails, I will pause and think of a better way to share and communicate.  Before sharing, I try to make sure that I have not tampered with the intent of my words and thoughts.  Can this be done each time?  I'm making a practice that I articulate and persuade better and with the right intent.

This is one of the very essential learning I have made from MITC 2016.  Thanks, Moolya and Moolyans for giving me this reflecting and retrospective learning.