# A guide on how best to file an issue for the developers.

Introduction

Too bad you found an issue with Webical :( But we are very happy you are willing to take the time to report it and help us out. This is a short story on how we like issues to be filed so we can jump on them as quick as possible.

Issue reporting in general

When you file an issue for us to look at, regardless of whether it is a bug, a feature request or something else entirely, please be as specific as possible. The more specific you are, the more likely we are to know exactly what you mean. This allows us to hopefully quickly and efficiently deal with the matter.

When you typed your very specific description of the issue, be sure to double check it before submitting. You only get one chance! Issue are not editable after they are submitted, and we want to prevent endless replies from the start to correct faults in the issue report.

Feature requests

If you found that Webical is missing a very important feature when you make use of Webical, we are most happy to be informed of this. But before you post an issue, be sure to check our Roadmap and issue tracker if the feature was already reported and maybe even assigned to a milestone.

If you found that nobody noticed the feature was missing, be sure to set the Type label for the new issue on Type-Enhancement when reporting the missing feature. It will be clear for the developers the issue is concerning a feature request.

Bugs / Defects

Bugs are common in every piece of software. So it would be ignorant to say Webical doesn't contain bugs. Knowing this, reporting a bug or defect issue starts with a search on the existing issues. Because your bug or defect might have been noticed by other users and may have been reported or, if you're lucky, even solved.

If your issue isn't reported yet, a standard text will help you with the filing of the issue. Be sure to include the following information in your issue report:

• Version of webical you are using
• Name and version of your servlet compatible container
• The database vendor and version you are using

Information!

When you report an issue concerning a bug or defect in Webical, make sure you provide us with as much information as possible. Webical error pages contain detailed stack traces and possible error causes. Be sure to include those in your issue report.

Provide as much information on your Webical installation and how the error occurred and how it (possibly) can be replicated. To help us even further, you can include the OpSys and Browser labels so we have more information on the issue.

Issue life cycle

New issues

Issues start out labeled New. If a developer finds the feature is useful, or the error can be replicated the issue will move to Accepted.

We acknowledged your problem

An issue labeled Accepted does not mean the issue is going to be fixed right away. Once the issue is accepted, a developer has to available to solve the issue.

We spring into action

When a resource comes available, the issue will be labeled Assigned and the owner will change to the assigned developer. You will still be in the CC field of the issue and receive updates on the status. The developer will label the issue as Started when the developer actually starts work on the issue.

Verifying the result

When the developer is finished with the issue, it will be labeled as Fixed. But the issue is only really fixed if it's verified. We ask the reporter of the issue to verify the fix. Alternatively the fix can be verified by one of our testers. If the fix is verified, the issue is closed with the status Verified.

Fixing not possible

It can happen an issue is moved directly to Invalid, Duplicate or Won't Fix. This means the issue report is incomplete, there is already an issue for your concerns or we couldn't replicate the issue. The assigned can request more information from you to replicate the error or redirect you to the correct issue.

Not satisfied?

When you are not satisfied with the result of the issue, you can discuss this in the issue thread. If the issue is verified, but you still encounter the same error you can bring this to our intention in the issue thread.

If your issue is closed without fixing, or the feature you requested will not be honored by us, you can convince us to reopen the issue if you think it is of real importance. Use the existing issue thread for this, please don't file a new issue.