Posted by Amit Kulkarni [Admin] | Posted in BlackBerry , bugs , lesson , open source app , testing | Posted on 2/08/2011 05:20:00 PM
Few weeks back I was testing a tiny utility on http://sf.net which I find good for testing plus, I was more interested in using the utility for my own sake. Now that does not mean that I always look out for something that will benefit me but at times, yes!
The tiny utility helps the user in converting the video files in different formats [almost all should I say]. I was enjoying the testing this application not only because I found bugs but because I could see how useful will it be for my own work. I was trying out different formats plus the options available in the utility itself which can be customized by the user. I made sure that I note down everything that will be useful for the developer in order to trace the exact cause for the issue, and in turn fix it. The bugs submitted via the tracker made available so everyone can have a look at them. Because some of the issues resulted in exceptions so I made sure that either I provide the exception log via comments, or upload the log as an attachment to the bug. Pretty good so far!
The next day when I checked my emails there were some emails from the developer of the tiny utility that I was testing, thanking me for testing so far! I said he does not have to thank me rather I should thank him for providing an opportunity for me to test an application. :) The same day I reported few bugs [again some exceptions] for some type of formats.
Where did I go wrong?
Continue from where I left for the day - I continued the testing for the application for various file formats that are available me, or using the converter that is available to convert the files in the format need to be tested for.
This is where things started going wrong - I feel that way though. After getting the confirmation from the developer that they have released a new build - I downloaded it and installed it on my system [removing the old version first]. I reported a bug [an exception] while uploading a file in the first step itself for the tiny utility. I looked at my report again to make sure that I provided everything that would help the developer to understand the issue. This is I believe I overlooked something that should be conveyed though. The file I tried to convert was not just a plane video file, but it was recorded using my BlackBerry device + BBScreenStream [a utility used to capture data from BlackBerry device and view it on PC/Laptop]. I did not pay close attention to this detail though as the format of the file that was saved on my PC/Laptop was .avi. I assumed that it should work without any problem just like other .avi files. But it did not work - and when upload the file to convert it results in an exception. Though I mentioned in bug report that the file I am trying to upload a file which is captured using BlackBerry device and the utility that helps in capturing off the data. I think this is where I made a mistake. I could not share the file or attach it with the bug report because it has some information that is not supposed to be share [confidential stuff]. A few more bugs and I was almost done for the day, as it was too late for me to continue with testing the application.
What did I do to follow-up with the developer?
The next day I see that the developer has closed the bug stating that it could not be reproduced. Okay, I said it to me. They could not reproduce it. Should I try once more whether I can reproduce it? Why not? I again followed the steps laid out and upload the file to convert but it failed. This is certainly not an environmental issue - I looked at the report again and everything looked fine to me. I open the tracker to see what action I can take, or is there a way for me to inform the developer that I can reproduce the issue every time I try. I then decided to message the developer via sf's messaging system. Instantly, I got a reply back from the developer that was quite funny - that I do not have BlackBerry device. :)
Okay, I laughed at the response and again got another message informing that they opened the issue again. That means that gives me an opportunity this time to provide more details which I believe could be useful in this case [I said so because it was not just a plane .avi file]. This is got to do with the output file that is generating by using BlackBerry device + BBScreenStream. If there is something wrong with the output codec and that can give them a clue or so. This time I again updated the bug report by mentioning the name of the utility I used to capture the data from BlackBerry device. [I should have done that earlier may be].
The experience taught me few things that it would be useful for a tester to look at the bug from every possible angle, and making sure that conveying the same via the bug report. Not sure if that would have helped them if I had provided the utility name earlier but at least that would have given them an opportunity to look at the output generated.
Your bug report is your representative. [Lesson from "Lesson Learned in Software Testing"]
You might wonder what happened to the issue though! Well, the issue is still open and I am not sure if the developer was able to trace out the cause for the issue and never asked for it. I wanted to make sure that I inform the developer of the program about the issue and the risk involved but the liability to fix it or not totally lies with them.
Br.,
Amit
Started writing this blog on 02/8/2011 at 04:50 PM IST and completed the blog at 05:20 PM IST
Started writing this blog on 02/8/2011 at 04:50 PM IST and completed the blog at 05:20 PM IST
