Re: Calling a Bug a Bug

[Beth Agnew <Beth -dot- Agnew -at- senecac -dot- on -dot- ca>]

I always expect that customers will read release notes (ok, I'm an 
optimist!) so when referring to anything in the product that does not 
work the way we want it to, I am very careful to make our product sound 
as stable and robust as possible. I never use the term "bug" in any 
document that will go to a customer. I also avoid words such as defect, 
problem, and issue. "Issue" sounds argumentative; "defect", "flaw" or 
"imperfection" sounds like someone didn't do their job. If I _must_ use 
one of those words, I prefer "problem" because problems have solutions.

Rather than saying "there is a problem with alignment of non-portrait 
text" I prefer to say "non-portrait text may not align correctly" and 
then give them the workaround if there is one. Heavy use of the word 
"may" because some customers may never encounter the problem, even 
though it exists.

And I NEVER include the big long list of bug numbers that have been 
fixed in a release, e.g., 5122, 5123, 5134, 5145, 5166, 5278, 5982, etc. 
What would you think, as a customer, if you got a notice saying the new 
software you just purchased has had scores of fixes? Instead of being 
impressed at how diligent the developers are, you're starting to wonder 
if you didn't just buy some smelly Swiss cheese containing holes they 
haven't yet found.
--Beth

tgr -at- lanminds -dot- com wrote: