Re: Bugs in Bugzilla

[Mark Gordon <mtgordon helixcode com>]

Maciej wrote:

> Joe Shaw <joe helixcode com> writes:
> 
> > > It requires an account even for submission to ensure a valid email
> > > address.
> > 
> > Yeah, this stinks, and doesn't fit in well with bug-buddy. If users find
> > they have to register to submit a bug, they just won't do it. Just because
> > a user doesn't have a valid email address doesn't make the bug not
> > worthwhile.
> > 
> 
> Well, it makes it impossible to follow up with the user if the info in
> the bug report is insufficient. Or for the user to be notified when
> the bug is closed, so it can be verified.
> 
> I think mandating a valid email address is acceptable. If we want to
> be able to get feedback other than that, it could be filed as "problem
> reports" which are only turned into real bug reports when someone
> looks at them and distills relevant information. But I don't think
> that is particularly critical.

It's reasonable for bug-buddy to check for localhost.localdomain and suggest that the 
user change it (though dropping the message, as Martin suggested earlier, is a bit
extreme).  For other cases, we may run into privacy zealots who don't want to 
distribute their email addresses (especially given that our bug databases are out
there in the open where spammers can send out bots to harvest addresses).  Given that
some addresses, even those that have been validated, may become invalid over time, 
(someone changes jobs, changes ISP's, leaves school, whatever), we're not always
going to be able to reach the original reporter, and we should just be prepared to 
deal with that from time to time.

-Mark Gordon