Tips for Beta Testers

i've done quite a bit of beta testing over the years and i tested the pc version of filter forge, as well. so, i thought i'd pass on some tips here.

1. be precise. if possible use the bug report system built into FF. the programmers need good info in order to trace bugs. they want to know what you did, what the program did, where you were in the program, e.g. using filters or making filters. they cant see over your shoulder, so, you have to explain time, place, form and event to them as best you can.

2. be as complete as possible. too much information is MUCH better than too little. as stated in #1, the programmers are going to want to know what was going on, what buttons you were pushing or what components in the editor you were playing with and even how long you'd been in the editor. it's also helpful at times to give your own machine specifications. in the pc world, no two machines are ever completely the same. i dont know how it is in the mac world, but it's a good idea to at least have posted your machine specs once for reference.

3. be polite. this one shldnt even have to be said, but flaming the programmers, flaming the program or flaming anyone, isnt getting the job done. keep your cool and keep communicating is at least a semi-rational method

4. never give bella cushions. they just go to her, uh... head.

5. report right away. if something happens or you notice something odd or out of place, report it NOW! the 'i'll do it later' method just doesnt work that well.

6. report it regardless of if someone else has already reported it. this one gets overlooked too many times. often, the only way to trace a bug is by knowing that it's occurring to everyone or to only a few. that often means it's something on the user's machine that other users dont have, like a piece of other hardware or other software. so, report everything unless one of the FF team says otherwise.

7. along with #6, report it every time it happens to you. this isnt quite the same as #6, but close. if you tried six different ways to do something in FF and every one of them caused a crash, this is important. if you only reported it once, the FF team would not know that you also tried it 5 more ways. so, report everything.

8. dont spam. just report the bug(s). i've seen folks sometimes report a whole family history or something like that when doing reports of any kind. "well, today, while i was playing with my brother, who works in IT in cincinnatti, and who is married with two children and has a nice car...blah, blah, blah, and FF crashed when we did that". lol. so, as sgt. friday would say, 'just the facts, maam!'

i may think of some more, but those are the biggies. have fun, report often and earn your freebie!

and welcome to FF.

i had noticed that also. i do hope she's ok.