How outstanding testers verify bugs

Bug verification can seem like the easiest thing in the world, but it’s not as simple as you might think. It takes extra effort to go from an ok tester, to an outstanding one.

Let’s start with the steps an ok tester might take:

1. Go through bug details quickly
2. Get the build with the fix
3. Try to reproduce
4. Problem doesn’t happen
5. Close bug

No. If you do this, you’re missing out on a whole lot and might run into situations where the software is more buggy or bugs that you’ve closed are still happening. Here are some possible flaws:

• You might not have read the details correctly and hence misunderstood the bug
• Not really sure the bug has been fixed
• Maybe the fix caused other issues

Now let’s go through what an outstanding tester would do:

1. Go through bug details, looking at any screenshots, logs, piece of code, steps to reproduce, and anything else that might be relevant
2. Something you don’t understand in the bug? Speak to a developer, tester, and whoever else is involved
3. Get the build where the bug happens
4. Reproduce the problem
5. Get a build with a fix
6. Try to reproduce in the exact same manner as step 4
7. Problem doesn’t happen. Great, next step!
8. Which areas might have been affected by this fix? Test around those!

Going back to the problems with the original approach:

• You might not have read the details correctly and hence misunderstood the bug
  • Covered in steps 1 – 4
• Not really sure the bug has been fixed
  • Covered in steps 1 – 7
• Maybe the fix caused other issues
  • Covered in step 8

Yes, it takes longer. Yes, it’s more effort. This is the type of extra effort that separates an ok tester from an outstanding one.