As a user of websites or web applications, you expect error-free functionality. Ensuring this is the goal of developers and administrators. However, errors cannot be 100% ruled out.
The following tips will help you to have errors analyzed and fixed quickly.
Describe the error in as much detail as you have available so that developers and administrators can understand and reproduce the error. Don’t hesitate to report an error. Check if the error occurs repeatedly. If it does, please report the error immediately.
Error message – What happened?
Describe what the error message says. Create a screen shot if possible. It should include the following information to facilitate quick processing:
- the current and complete web address,
- the actual error message, and
- the exact time including seconds.
The web address along with the error message can already point in the right direction at the beginning of the analysis. With the second-accurate time, developers and administrators can compare log entries and connect them to the error. This information helps to quickly and smoothly resolve the error.
How to create screen shots…
Note: If you are reporting graphical errors, please use the PNG format for the screen shot to ensure that all image information that may be helpful for analysis is retained.
Expectation – What should have happened?
Describe in detail what you wanted to do and what you think should have happened. If you have the following information, please also include it in the error description:
- User ID (especially if you are reporting the error on behalf of someone else!)
- operating system and version
- web browser used and version
With this information, the error search gets a boost and you will quickly have a functioning application.
Translated by Rene Schmidt with help from DeepL and ChatGPT