Determining Context Factors Used When Selecting Web Development Debugging Strategies

Abstract

When debugging, developers have many strategies they may choose from to proceed. A programming strategy is a series of steps developers take to accomplish a goal. Depending on the context, developers may choose between different strategies. Developers with more effective strategies, or better ways to choose between strategies, are able to debug substantially faster. To understand these context factors, we are designing a study to investigate the strategies developers may choose when debugging and the context factors which impact these choices. Developers will be given a list of common debugging strategies and common debugging problems. Developers will then be asked to identify what debugging strategy they would use to address each problem, what context factors influenced their choice in strategy, and what strategies would not be effective, based on their personal experiences. We hope this study will provide valuable insights that help developers select more effective debugging strategies.