This version of the talk was presented at eurucamp 2014.
The ScientificMethodof Troubleshooting
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@blithe
Big Nerd RanchAtlanta, Georgia
Scientist
PhD inPhysicalChemistry
Physics
Chemistry
6 Years!
Experiments
ScientificMethod
Developer< >
StackOverflow
Problem solved?
Learn anything?
Most Important Part
Set of TechniquesFor AcquiringKnowledge
Methodical
Systematic
“Has anyone seenstring interpolationfail?”
Definethe Problem
Expected behavior?!!!
Expected behavior?!Actual behavior?!
Expected behavior?!Actual behavior?!Criteria for success?
Do YourResearch
Know yourenvironment
Read the literature
Discussions
Make it fail!
Establish aHypothesis
Designthe Experiment
Divide and conquer!
Limit the variables
Try something weird
Hierarchy of Blame
GatherData
Current status?
Read the errormessage!
AnalyzeYour Results
Problem solved?!Learn anything?
Understand the Why
Future Experiments
Embrace the Success
Keep a GoodLab Notebook
You won’tremember
Logs aren’t enough
Commit Messages
Update the Docs
Contribute
SharetheKnowledge
Thanks!@blithe