Bugs and Uncertainty

Software development is a complex process, and it is normal for some bugs to be present in a system, even with careful testing and quality assurance practices.

Bugs, by their nature, are unpredictable. They are complicated due to predicting how long it would take to fix them. Fixing a bug could take two minutes or four days to understand its cause, let alone put in place a fix.

The unpredictable nature of bugs creates an environment in which the whole system becomes uncertain. The uncertainty affects the team’s velocity and accuracy in the medium to short term. Software development schedules have no meaning with open bugs.

Fixing bugs first creates predictability.

Unresolved bugs increase the risk of future changes. Development teams updating a system are at a higher risk of allowing bugs to creep through customers’ experiences.

Bugs become obsolete in applications that are updated. The accumulation of bugs leads to less predictability for feature development. Unresolved bugs lead to an uncertain environment, lowering service quality.

The steps to reproduce become irrelevant, the functionality changes, and the impact of the bug often get lower. A bug-free codebase removes this uncertainty, making it easier to predict how long new feature development will take. Besides, it is essential to focus on bug fixes and new feature development based on their impact on the business and customer experience. Ensure that the most critical issues are addressed on time while allowing for the development of new features that can add value to the product.

A bug-free codebase can help improve the quality of a product and increase customer trust. Yet, it is only sometimes possible to drop all bugs from a system altogether, and it may only occasionally be practical.