DEV Community

Nevin Katz
Nevin Katz

Posted on

Debugging Tactics

“At some point, everything's gonna go south on you and you're going to say, this is it. This is how I end. Now you can either accept that, or you can get to work.”

—Mark Watney, The Martian


This quote inspired me to write an article on how to survive when faced with a seemingly insurmountable bug in your project. Before you scream into the void about your ever-elusive bug, check out Seven Strategies for Finding the Toughest Bugs in Your Code. Who knows - it may be hiding in plain sight.

Encounters with tough-to-solve bugs can make coding feel like a rollercoaster of hopelessness and euphoria. And sometimes you are the only one who will have the background knowledge needed to solve them efficiently.

If you've already been at it for hours, you're not alone.

And if it has been a bug-free week so far, there's still time - so keep some of these tips in your back pocket next time you find yourself down the rabbit hole.

You can do it.

Hostinger image

Get n8n VPS hosting 3x cheaper than a cloud solution

Get fast, easy, secure n8n VPS hosting from $4.99/mo at Hostinger. Automate any workflow using a pre-installed n8n application and no-code customization.

Start now

Top comments (0)

SurveyJS custom survey software

JavaScript Form Builder UI Component

Generate dynamic JSON-driven forms directly in your JavaScript app (Angular, React, Vue.js, jQuery) with a fully customizable drag-and-drop form builder. Easily integrate with any backend system and retain full ownership over your data, with no user or form submission limits.

Learn more

Best practices for optimal infrastructure performance with Magento

Running a Magento store? Struggling with performance bottlenecks? Join us and get actionable insights and real-world strategies to keep your store fast and reliable.

Tune in to the full event

DEV is partnering to bring live events to the community. Join us or dismiss this billboard if you're not interested. ❤️