Essence of Debugging

Past five years I was using good old mobile model (Nokia's first color version), a very sturdy and stable phone.  Though it had very minimal feature, it served my purpose. Now the world is flooded with smartphone variants, every day we hear about one or the other releases. But (still) I adored my phone and heisted to buy a new phone, in-spite of co-worker’s and friend’s mocking.

One fine day, it started to send SMS to very first contact in my address book till pre-paid amount was depleted, thank god I did not subscribe for post-paid plan. With lots of reluctance, I bought latest smartphone from top branded company. I qualify tablets yet it took a day to recognize basic functionalities, sounds funny right!

Next day with pride I showcased my smartphone to my team. Many well-wishers gave lot of suggestions to bash new-fangled stuffs. Indeed I was busy, exploring apps for 2 weeks and did not notice any glitches. My father gifted a flip mobile cover; it further thrilled my mobile experience.

Happy days does not last long, suddenly battery life went for a toss. Immediately like any other software engineer, I googled to figure out reason. Even if I did not touch my phone, battery was draining at rate of 5% per 15 minutes. Tried every tips and tricks that was suggested on internet; no use. At last seeked nearby service center help, here is the twist. Help desk employee clearly said they attend only software issues and pointed another center where hardware issues are figured out. (She did not touch my mobile and figured out it is a hardware issue!!)

Ringed service center-II and stated my problem. “I think your phone battery needs a replacement, but still we cannot assure the new battery will resolve your issue…Thanks for calling XXX service center, have a nice day” this is the reply I got from them.

Climax

           Went home with lots of frustration, removed mobile cover and throwed it on ground. Then suddenly a thought flashed on my mind, will this beautiful cover ruin batter life? Immediately did an analysis, and answer was “yes”. It was a pure leather cover and it heated up lithium battery to the core; hence battery drained continuously.

Debugging is a skill that many testers pay less attention, but it is a key trait expected from a testing expert. Always trace back (Reverse engineering) to figure out the root cause. Take one component for analysis and hit the culprit. Happy debugging!!