Please note this is Linked From our Main Article – 7 Things Clients Should Know When Building A Website
2 of 7 – Why Has or Did Something Break on My Website or Software?
To identify a particular site design issue and ask ‘why’ is this happening, or why did this happen can often be a considerable one, taking many hours or longer to investigate. This is because we may need to trace back to the original site design, the development process is not at hand, something was coded outside version control or we are dealing with a third-party application. We may be able to quickly replicate a bug for analysis, or in difficult circumstances backward engineer the entire problem to see if we can identify the source.
Instead, it is far often quicker to simply re-code a segment or upgrade it, and in the current speed at which software platforms advance, this is often the case.
There are also many cases where we can immediately identify the cause of an issue. Definitely when we have seen the same issue, or a similar bug on another website. Ideally at this point we want to provide a concise explanation.
However, there is also technical terms and detail to overcome, often a gap itself for non-technical clients. What seems like a simple fix on a page, may in fact be part of a more elaborate system requiring many hours or days to analyse, fix, test and install online.
The bottom line is, why? – this is the wrong question to ask. Instead look for alternatives, ask Why Not? Why not Plan B? Or why not try a work-around? Why not simplify this functionality? Being flexible with alternatives that fit your business objectives will keep you and your customers happy. To address every bug perfectly and understand the technical detail, in a reasonable timeframe may result far larger opportunities lost.