Hello crowder!
Here we'll explain how to report bugs correctly so you can get your rewards!
First of all it's important to clarify that what each of us considers as a bug is not always a bug: we all have different perceptions about the same product or service, the result of different personal experiences.
Thus, at the outset all "reported bugs" are, in fact, considered by our Test Managers as "anomalies". Only when the Test Managers are able to reproduce, frame and classify the anomaly can it be called a "bug".
Right now we have missions going on in which we expect your contribution. And since our goal is to reward you for your effort, we decided to give you some tips on how you can maximize the chances of getting the anomalies you report as bugs, thus entitling you to receive your prize money and also becoming eligible for Amazon voucher drawings.
Since no digital product or service is free of anomalies and improvement is a continuous process, let's use our Crowdville platform in our demonstration, with an anomaly that you may have already encountered.
The examples we give are merely indicative. However, we believe they are relevant and above all inspiring, so that you can reach a good level of understanding.
SHOULD I REPORT AN ANOMALY IN MY LANGUAGE?
The preferred language for English crowders is English. For this reason, we suggest that you make all reports in English campaigns in English, as it may be easier for you to express yourself using more adequate, simple and direct words and phrases. That is: using expressions that come naturally to you in your native language, assuming you are a Anglophones crowder.
WHAT TITLE TO GIVE AN ANOMALY?
The title of an anomaly is expected to be succinct enough for the evaluator, the Test Manager, to be able to immediately recognize details such as:
The functional area in which the anomaly occurs, answering the question: where in the application or site is the error occurring?
What type of anomaly it is, answering questions such as: which functionality is failing and how often does it fail?
Optionally and if possible, you should also state "where" and "when" the anomaly is occurring.
As an example, a suitable title would be:
Whenever I am on a mission I click the "back" button on the browser, the Crowdville page takes me to the Community.
Conversely, a less suitable title would be:
Back button fails
A rule of thumb at these times is: what helps me recognize an anomaly in a few words?
HOW TO PROPERLY DESCRIBE AN ANOMALY?
The description should contain relevant facts that help to reproduce and eventually locate an anomaly, contrasting it with the expected state, or else subsequent actions that have been affected by it.
It should be used as a motivator to explore and reproduce the anomaly, i.e.: besides giving relevant cues to reproduce the anomaly, the description is expected to reinforce the "pain" it causes the crowder.
Going back to the previous anomaly, we can for example use the following description:
When I go to report a bug and I switch to a "References", "Banking Form", "Community" tab, I am expecting to go back to the "Quests" tab, but I always end up in "Community". Because of this I lost the information I had filled in from an anomaly. This behavior is reproducible in Google Chrome.
As a counterexample, the Test Manager could easily have trouble classifying an anomaly whose description is just a repetition of the title or even vague, such as the following:
Back button took me to the wrong place.
HOW TO INDICATE THE STEPS TO REPRODUCE AN ANOMALY?
The steps to reproduce an anomaly should be numbered, imperative, provided with context (with explicit references to the location of the elements) and, if necessary, a relevant temporal or positional indication.
An advised structure follows below:
<action> <element>
<action> <element> <time>
<action> <element> <relative element>
<action> <element> <time>
<action> <element> <relative element>
...
...
<conclusion/anomaly>
(Note: you can often anomaly in fewer or more steps, as you'll see later.)
In our previous case we would have as an example:
Click on the "Missions" tab in the top horizontal bar;
Click on the "Bank Form" tab, on the same bar;
Click on the "back" button of the browser;
Redirected to the "Community" after a few seconds.
Click on the "Bank Form" tab, on the same bar;
Click on the "back" button of the browser;
Redirected to the "Community" after a few seconds.
Ideally, we should describe the anomaly and repeat the steps that we describe ourselves, to verify that we have arrived at the end result that the anomaly is achieved.
HOW TO PRESENT GOOD EVIDENCE TO DEMONSTRATE AN ANOMALY?
Except in exceptional and duly justified missions, the absence of evidence to demonstrate the anomaly is enough for it not to be classified as a bug, and thus the crowder will not receive the reward, even if the steps are clear and objective enough to reproduce the anomaly.
It should also be noted that a static image of the screen is not always satisfactory as evidence: a video with a few seconds or even a few minutes during which the crowder demonstrates the anomaly may be decisive for the Test Manager to accept the anomaly, automatically making the crowder eligible for the reward.
On the other hand, if a single image or video does not demonstrate the anomaly properly, adding other images or videos (provided they are of a reasonable size) may be the differentiating factor between a validated bug and a discarded anomaly.
As an example, we demonstrate the previously demonstrated anomaly with a GIF:
https://imgur.com/a/OChwqhA
The fundamental question the crowder should ask himself should be this: if I had to evaluate an anomaly, would I be able to immediately understand the point of failure with the evidence I am providing?
As you might guess, the first time you report an anomaly, following all the indications we have given you, it will apparently take you longer.
However, as with everything, this is a matter of practice: you will soon realize that you are creating a system that will make you much more disciplined, judicious, and fast.
We created this guide for the whole English community, because we have more and more initiatives at Crowdville, and so that you are better prepared for the new challenges that are coming!
Do you want to become the best Crowder? Follow these steps and you will succeed!
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