
For example, a "search" page for a web site might have an option for "case-insensitive" searching. Poor user interface designs often lead users to use the program in ways that accomplish something other than what they intend. More difficult design errors fall into several categories:Ĭomplex interactivity bugs arise in scenarios where multiple parts of a single program, multiple programs, or multiple computers interact. Obvious design flaws are often demonstrated by programs that run up against the limits of a computer, such as available memory, available disk space, available processor speed, and overwhelming input/output devices. Software users readily see some design errors, while in other cases design flaws make a program more difficult to improve or fix, and those flaws are not obvious to a user.

Failing to initialize a variable ( "y = x + 1", where x has not been set) when absolutely required.Using the wrong variable names in the wrong places ( "moveTo(y, x)" instead of "moveTo(x, y)").Calling the wrong function ("moveUp", instead of "moveDown").With coding errors, the source of the problem lies with programmer induced erroneous or improper code. What are these different kinds of bugs, then? The most common types of mistakes when programming are: Part of debugging effectively involves using the appropriate techniques to get necessary information from the different sources of problem reports. The programmer may find an issue, a software tester might identify a problem, or an end user might report an unexpected result. Learning how to debug a program effectively, then, requires that you learn how to identify which sort of problem you're looking at, and apply the appropriate techniques to eliminate the problem.īugs are found throughout the software life cycle. "Bugs" come in a variety of forms, including: coding errors, design errors, complex interactions, poor user interface designs, and system failures. 5.8 Try another port of your Applicationĭebugging is the art of diagnosing errors in programs and determining how to correct them.



5.7 Back out changes that have no effect.
