5 @cindex troubleshooting
7 Occasionally you may encounter a bug in @pspp{}.
9 @section When to report bugs
11 If you discover a bug, please first:
13 @item Make sure that it really is a bug. Sometimes, what may appear
14 to be a bug, turns out to be a misunderstanding of how to use the program.
15 If you are unsure, ask for advice on the pspp-users mailing list.
16 Information about the mailing list is at @uref{http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/pspp-users}.
17 @item Try an up to date version of @pspp{}; the problem
18 may have been recently fixed.
19 @item If the problem persists in the up to date version, check to see
20 if it has already been reported. Reported issues are listed
21 at @uref{http://savannah.gnu.org/bugs/?group=pspp}.
22 For known issues in individual language features, see the relevant section in @pxref{Language}.
23 @item If the problem exists in a recent version and it has not already
24 been reported, then please report it.
28 @section How to report bugs
30 The best way to send a bug report is using the web page at
31 @uref{http://savannah.gnu.org/bugs/?group=pspp}.
32 Alternatively, bug reports may be sent by email
33 to @email{bug-gnu-pspp@@gnu.org}.
35 In your bug report please include:
37 @item The version of @pspp{} in which you encountered the problem.
38 That means the precise version number. Do not simply say ``the latest version'' ---
39 releases happen quickly, and bug reports are archived indefinitely.
40 @item The operating system and type of computer on which it is running. On a GNU
41 or other unix-like system, the output from the @cmd{uname} command is helpful.
42 @item A sample of the syntax which causes the problem or, if it is a user
43 interface problem, the sequence of steps required to reproduce it.
44 Screen shots are not usually helpful unless you are reporting a bug in
45 the graphical user interface itself.
46 @item A description of what you think is wrong: What happened that you
47 didn't expect, and what did you expect to happen?
50 The following is an example of a useful bug report:
52 When I run PSPP 0.8.4 on the system:
53 "Linux knut 3.5.3-gnu #1 PREEMPT Tue Aug 28 10:49:41 UTC 2012 mips64 GNU/Linux"
54 Executing the following syntax:
68 I think the output should be:
74 @noindent Here, the developers have the necessary information to reproduce the circumstances of the bug report,
75 and they understand what the reporter expected.
78 Conversely, the following is a useless bug report:
81 I downloaded the latest version of PSPP and entered a sequence of numbers,
82 but when I analyse them it gives the wrong output.
84 @noindent In that example, it is impossible to reproduce, and there is no indication
85 of why the reporter thought what he saw was wrong.
87 Note that the purpose of bug reports is to help improve the quality of @pspp{}
88 for the benefit of all users.
89 It is not a consultancy or support service. If that is what you want, you are welcome to make
90 private arrangements. Since @pspp{} is free software, consultants have access to
91 the information they need to provide such support.
92 The @pspp{} developers appreciate all users' feedback, but cannot promise an immediate response.
94 Please do not use the bug reporting address for general enquiries or to seek
95 help in using, installing or running the program.
96 For that, use the pspp-users mailing list mentioned above.