Watch out for devs trying trick bug reporters into doing work

Sometimes I report a bug & the dev starts off asking for more details. But then there’s a kind of scope of effort creep where you start to realize you’re being tricked into finding where in the code the problem is so you can fix the bug.

It’s a bit of social engineering of sorts. When I post a bug, I do that from the back seat of the car. And it’s like the dev sits in the backseat as well while coercing me into the front seat. So sometimes there’s a bit of weasel words and nuances with sneaky wording that needs to be deployed in order to stay in the backseat while trying to get the dev into the front seat where they belong!

Sigmatics ,

God forbid you actually help out with the software you’re using at absolutely no cost to you.

railsdev ,

I actually agree.

I’ve filed bugs before with all the relevant details then after a huge conversation I’m told to write the fix.

In the situation I’m thinking of, I was asked to write a fix in a huge Python codebase as well as specs, JavaScript for the frontend, etc.

Bro, I’m a Rails developer. I’m not doing all that; I’m a user, not part of your organization. 🙄

fubo ,

If you’re not paying that engineer, you have no good reason to form opinions about “where they belong” in terms of work they do that might benefit you.

activistPnk OP ,

Someone tasking someone else without paying them is indeed being not where they belong. In the case of the OP, that’s the dev tasking the bug reporter.

deegeese ,
@deegeese@sopuli.xyz avatar

Are you a paying customer? If so, I understand completely.

Is this free software? The dev is a bigger volunteer than you.

activistPnk OP ,

Are you a paying customer?

Testers and bug reporters are not paying customers. They are volunteer CONTRIBUTORS.

If so, I understand completely.

Obviously not.

The dev is a bigger volunteer than you.

Nonsense. Contributors are equals. Exceptionally, devs who demand that testers also fix the software are notably smaller (managers, effectively).

deegeese ,
@deegeese@sopuli.xyz avatar

So you did not pay, but you are BOLDFACING your volunteer contribution over the much larger contributions of the developers.

activistPnk OP ,

So you did not pay,

And? Of course testers do not pay money. Why would they? Devs do not pay for the tester’s work either. Both developers and testers are volunteers who do not pay the other for their work. On free software projects testers and devs pay with their own labor.

much larger contributions of the developers.

It is not “much larger” for a dev to task the tester to implement the fix. The dev is no more than a manager in this case.

deegeese ,
@deegeese@sopuli.xyz avatar

Programming contributions >> incomplete bug reports

activistPnk OP ,

Did I say incomplete? You’ll have to quote where you get that from.

Compare like with like. You can have incomplete code, and you can have incomplete bug reports. Neither are relevant here.

deegeese ,
@deegeese@sopuli.xyz avatar

This whole post is you defending a half assed bug report.

activistPnk OP ,

What bug report? There’s no bug single report in particular to speak of. I’ve filed hundreds if not thousands of bug reports over the years. The post is a reflection of a subset of those experiences.

When a developer asks a tester to look at a module in the source code, that is not a consequence of a “half assed bug report”. It’s the contrary. When a dev knows a particular module of code is suspect, the bug report served well in giving a detailed idea of what the issue is.

flubba86 ,

That last sentence makes me think this is a tonge-in-cheek post, sarcastic and looking for a reaction. Subtle trolling. Ignore it and move on.

nous ,

Ok then.

Ticket marked as closed: won’t fix, cannot reproduce, not enough details

GammaGames ,
@GammaGames@beehaw.org avatar

If this is satire, it’s good

activistPnk OP ,

Of course… The reaction shows how seriously wound tight people are. Obviously not much sense of humor in this community.

There are a couple rare cases where devs have tried to coerce me into a fix. Sometimes they outright say they expect the bug reporter to fix it, strangely enough. It never happened in a language that I knew, and weird that bug reporters would be expected to know how to program at all. But it’s far from the norm.

thingsiplay ,
@thingsiplay@kbin.social avatar

While I understand this is humorous post, it's not crystal clear. That does not mean people lack humor, that only means we encounter a lot of trolls or idiots in the forums, that we no longer know if someone is joking or is being serious. So you should not call people being seriously wounded, if your joke didn't come as you wish it was.

In short, if it's not 100% clear (and it's not), then marking it as "sarcasm" is not a bad idea if you just making a joke without trolling or flamewar. That's just my thumb of rule. It helps you not get misunderstood.

activistPnk OP , (edited )

That’s fair enough, but it’s a bit of both (satire and reality). It’s actually a true account (details withheld because I have a bit of respect for the developer in the recent case). This is something that really happens. Not often, but occasionally there are devs & others who expect bug reporters to do a fix. There’s a poor attitude that bug reporters are in some way a beneficiary/consumer and the false idea that the devs are working for the bug reporter. There’s also an assumption that the bug reporter is in some way in need of a fix. When in fact the bug reporter is a volunteer contributor, performing work for the project just like the dev. It’s just as wrong for a dev to demand work a bug reporter work on the code as it is for a bug reporter to demand work from a dev. Everyone gives what they can or wants to. A bug report is not an individual support request. It’s a community bug – one that may or may not even affect the bug reporter.

sorrybookbroke ,
@sorrybookbroke@sh.itjust.works avatar

Yeah I don’t know man, as a dev this sounds like you are finding things that cannot be reproduced and the dev can only get more information from your machine. It’s like if you were calling up a mechanic on the phone. He can’t take the wheel. Would you be ok with giving them access to your PC remotely to try and find the bug?

Nah man, we’re not trying to weasle you into finding the bug yourself. We would very much prefer to interact with end users as little as possible.

VonReposti ,

where they belong!

Sounds like you take the generosity of open-source devs for granted.

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