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Tarzan
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Computers & Technology
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11:24 PM on November 18, 2008
Khan's Answer
Spend any amount of time working or playing on computers and soon you’ll hear three words bandied about: troubleshooting, testing and debugging. While the first two are common enough, their meanings might seem blurred or even synonymous. In practice each of these actions is different, though related.
Troubleshooting is the bane of the end-user and customer support technician, and begins when software or hardware does not perform as expected, giving an unanticipated or otherwise unsatisfactory result. In many cases user error is at fault.
The first step in troubleshooting is to cover the basics. Is the software or hardware installed properly? Is it configured properly? Have you read the manual and followed all instructions? Maybe you changed something in your system that precipitated the problem? Have you been using this product all along, or is it a new install?
If it’s a new install you can almost be sure that the trouble lies in the installation process, particularly in the case of hardware. Hardware requires a device driver (software file) that acts as a bridge or interface between the hardware and the operating system. If the device driver fails, the hardware cannot communicate properly with other system components. Device drivers might not be present or might have been installed in the wrong order relative to the device.
If the problem lies in hardware that was working perfectly fine up to the present moment, corruption of the device driver might be the cause. Reinstalling the driver might solve the problem. An updated driver might also do the trick. Other times, reseating a component in the motherboard by powering down the computer, extracting the component then reinstalling it takes care of the issue.
Troubleshooting hardware in Windows™ operating systems is also available through the Device Manager and Help menus. A yellow exclamation mark next to a component in the Device Manager indicates a problem.
Software that starts behaving badly might also be corrupted. Reinstallation can sometimes help, but if a program began acting up after new, unrelated software was installed, there might be a conflict between the two. Firewalls and anti-virus programs are notorious for not playing together nicely, and it’s probably wise to stick to just one program in each of these categories unless you are an advanced user.
Troubleshooting in general usually involves reading manuals or help files, going over the basics to eliminate user error as a potential cause, and using a search engine to investigate how others have solved the problem. If there’s one thing you can always count on as an end user, it’s that someone has walked in your shoes before. The Internet community is very good about providing help, and in most cases answers can be found by diligent searching.
Testing is the precursor to debugging. Testing is commonly the forte of programmers and advanced users, and occurs when a product is new or is being updated and needs to be put through its paces to eliminate potential problems. Testing identifies “bugs” or imperfections so that they can be corrected in the debugging process, before the [next] official release of the product. These “unofficial” releases are known as beta releases (e.g. 3.0b), and public volunteers are known as beta testers.
Beta testing is a valuable resource for software developers because of the varied computer systems participating, combined with the sheer number of hours and scenarios under which the program is used. This flushes out unforeseen problems in a way that can’t be effectively achieved using in house debuggers only. The beta testing phase gives authors a good idea of the readiness of a product for the public domain.
Hardware is beta tested as well but since it is financially prohibitive to provide free beta hardware to the public, hardware testing and debugging is commonly done in house. Beta products m
Answered at
11:33 PM on November 18, 2008
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