Zero Bug Policy

Noun · Hacker Culture

Definitions

  1. A policy or aspiration that no known bugs should remain open at a certain release stage, or that defects must be fixed rather than indefinitely tolerated. Depending on implementation, it can improve quality or create perverse incentives to relabel work.

    In plain English: A rule aiming to prevent known bugs from being left unresolved.

    Example: "The zero bug policy cleaned up the backlog, but it also encouraged teams to downgrade severity to dodge the rule."

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