Bug Report Etiquette

[Rithiel]

There is a bug report guideline, but I thought I'd post some thoughts on bug etiquette.

Bug report is not a place to say where you'd like something changed. It is a place for bugs - things that are broken, not things that are inconveniencing you, or things that you would like to be different.

We don't really need commentary in bug reports. They should be straightforward - say in as much detail as possible what is wrong - with nothing else. No need for things like "Why is it this way?" or "Can you explain to me why this is?" or "What's up with this?" If you think something is a bug, then the answer to all of those questions is "It's a bug."

For example: there was a legitimate bug posted, but then followed by this ".. um... really? That's just nonsense. It's worth far more than that." This is completely unnecessary and makes us not want to fix it. The same thing goes with being rude, or just sounding rude. Bug reports are just a way to share information, nothing else. Bugs aren't personal, it's not like we were trying to ruin the game for you.

[faylen]

Thanks for this, Rithiel. I admit to being one that sometimes adds commentary, but my intent has never been to be rude or demeaning. I've done it usually when a certain bug amuses me and I try to make the report lighthearted while still giving the information. And yes, sometimes certain bugs do amuse me, I'm strange like that. I also want to add that I love having the bugcheck command. The other day I was even able to reference a previous bug by number when I discovered more info. Very helpful.

[Rithiel]

There's a big difference between expressing amusement and some of the stuff we've seen lately.