Drupal.org issue queue and how to use it.

At the DBUG meetup tonight we spoke about the issue queue on Drupal.org and how to use it. jyee and sreynen walked everyone through a theoretical case where a contributer and a user interact through the issues queue in order to resolve an issue. Though it was fun to watch as they went back and forth posting an issue to posting a patch to finally closing the issue there were some key things to keep in mind regarding the issue queue.

First and maybe the most important point, if you are having an issue with a module you must report it. It is very likely that you are not the only user to come up against this problem but it can be the case that the issue that you are running into may not be known by the contributor. It is important to report the issue because it raises a flag for the contributor and possibly for others letting them know that there is a potential problem and one that should be addressed. If you report the issue, you are assisting others in the community by, if nothing else, giving them a place to go to track the status of an issue they are having.

When reporting an issue, detail is king. The more detail about the issue including what you were expecting and what the actual outcome was, and possibly step-by-step instructions on reproducing the issue will make it much easier for the contributor to fix your issue. In certain cases you may need to include other information such as the browser being used and the browser version. Giving as much information as possible can be like giving the contributor a map to where the issue can be found.

A third point that wasn't touched on but I think is really important to mention, not all the contributors or users have English as their first language. Words in print, especially in forums or the issue queue could be easily misconstrued and feelings can get hurt. It is important to remember that the Drupal community is just that, a community and that almost all of its members are trying to make Drupal the best it can possibly be. If someone posts a message to you that seems harsh, try and get past it and move on with the issue, chances are the words weren't meant in the way they were taken. That being said, it must be understood that the community is full of volunteers who give up their time in order to make your life easier (in most cases). The efforts of these contributors should always be appreciated and their time should be respected.

After the session on the issue queue the floor was opened for more general questions. Overall it was a really good meetup. Thanks to Aten Design Group for the Pizza and Beer and thanks to Denver Open Media for hosting, recording, and streaming the meeting. You can go to http://denveropenmedia.org/project/dbug-meetups-open-media-foundation in a couple days when the video will be posted.