Bug Interview Skill

Process

Phase 1: Initial Understanding

Phase 2: Deep Interview

• Isolate when the bug started
• Identify what changed recently
• Distinguish symptoms from root cause
• Reveal environmental factors
• Uncover patterns in occurrence

Question Categories (explore all relevant ones):

• Exact steps to reproduce—what's the minimum path?
• Does it happen every time or intermittently?
• Can you reproduce in incognito/fresh browser?
• Does it happen on specific data or any data?
• Is there a specific sequence of actions that triggers it?

• Which browsers/devices have you tested?
• Local dev, staging, or production?
• Any browser extensions that might interfere?
• Network conditions (slow connection, offline)?
• Screen size or zoom level relevant?

• When did this start happening?
• What changed recently? (deploys, dependencies, data)
• Does it happen after specific user actions?
• Time-based? (after X seconds, after idle, on first load)
• Does refreshing fix it? For how long?

• What exactly do you see? (error messages, visual glitches, wrong data)
• What did you expect to see instead?
• Any console errors or network failures?
• Does the UI show any loading/error states?
• Is data actually wrong, or just displayed wrong?

• How many users are affected?
• Is there a workaround?
• What's blocked by this bug?
• Is data being corrupted or just display issues?
• Any related symptoms you've noticed?

• What have you already tried?
• Any theories on what might be causing it?
• Have you seen similar bugs before?
• Any recent changes to the affected area?
• Relevant logs or error messages you've captured?

• Does it happen with specific data or all data?
• If you simplify the scenario, does it still happen?
• Can you trigger it with dev tools open?
• Does it happen if you disable X feature?

Phase 3: Synthesis

1. Confirmed symptoms
2. Reproduction steps (if known)
3. Environmental factors
4. Likely area of codebase affected
5. Leading theories on root cause
6. What's still unknown

Phase 4: Write the Plan

.claude/plans/bug-<bug-name>.md

# Bug: [Short Description]

> [One-line summary of the symptom]

## Summary

**Reported:** [Date]
**Severity:** [Critical/High/Medium/Low]
**Affected:** [Users/browsers/environments]

[2-3 paragraph description of the bug, symptoms, and impact]

## Reproduction Steps

1. Step 1
2. Step 2
3. Step 3

**Expected:** [What should happen]
**Actual:** [What happens instead]

**Frequency:** [Always/Sometimes/Rare]
**Workaround:** [If any]

## Environment

- Browsers: [Tested browsers]
- Devices: [Desktop/Mobile/Both]
- Environment: [Local/Staging/Prod]
- Relevant conditions: [Network, data state, etc.]

## Investigation Plan

### Phase 1: Confirm & Isolate
1. [ ] Reproduce locally with exact steps
2. [ ] Check console/network for errors
3. [ ] Identify minimal reproduction case

### Phase 2: Locate Root Cause
1. [ ] Examine [suspected component/file]
2. [ ] Add logging at [specific points]
3. [ ] Check for [specific conditions]

### Phase 3: Fix & Verify
1. [ ] Implement fix in [location]
2. [ ] Verify fix resolves reproduction case
3. [ ] Test related scenarios for regression

## Hypotheses

| Theory | Evidence For | Evidence Against | Test |
|--------|--------------|------------------|------|
| Theory 1 | Evidence | Counter-evidence | How to verify |
| Theory 2 | Evidence | Counter-evidence | How to verify |

## Affected Code

Files likely involved:
- `path/to/file.ts` - [Why suspected]
- `path/to/other.ts` - [Why suspected]

## Testing Strategy

- [ ] Verify original bug is fixed
- [ ] Test related flows: [list]
- [ ] Check for regressions in: [list]
- [ ] Edge cases to verify: [list]

## Open Questions

- [ ] Question needing investigation
- [ ] Uncertainty to resolve

## Timeline

- **Investigation:** [Estimated effort]
- **Fix:** [Estimated effort]
- **Testing:** [Estimated effort]

Interview Style Guidelines

• Ask 1-2 focused questions at a time
• Be specific: "What exact error message?" not "Any errors?"
• Ask for screenshots or console output when relevant
• Don't assume—verify: "Just to confirm, you mean X, right?"
• Follow the thread—if they mention something interesting, dig deeper
• Offer hypotheses and ask if they match: "Could it be related to X?"

When to Stop Interviewing

• You have a clear reproduction path
• You have enough context to start investigating code
• You've identified the likely area of the codebase
• Further questions would require code investigation to answer