User Bug Fix Incentive

[AndyBury1]

We often spend time helping ESRI find and troubleshoot bugs in the software.  Although we can appreciate that this effort helps improve the software that we use every day, it doesn't pay the bills.  However, ESRI can help, and in the process, incentivize users to submit bugs and help to fix them.  My suggestion is that for each bug that a user brings to your attention and that subsequently results in improving the software, ESRI lowers that user's software maintenance fee by a certain amount.  You would be giving us maintenance credits for helping you fix your software.  

[KenCarrier]

I like the idea but the problem is often times you are not the first person to find a bug, you are added to a list of other users who are also experiencing the same bug. Now if you find a workaround and supply Esri with a workaround or solution then I think you might be on to something. What I think Esri might say is "thats why we created the forums", our community has always been excellent at helping one another and typically if I find a workaround I will share it on the forums or some other medium. This way it prevents others from banging their heads and saves brain cells.

[GraemeBrowning]

I don't think a $$$ per bug idea will work but maybe rewarding Discussion Forum MVPs with free Maintenance (probably capped) for their organisation might.

[RobertMartin2]

Even an unincentivized bug tracking system would be nice. I find myself coming here to report bugs but really it should be limited to feature requests.

What ever happened to this?

http://blogs.esri.com/esri/supportcenter/2007/09/14/bugs-online-is-here/

[KoryKramer]

It is now possible to Subscribe to a bug through support.esri.com

Once you find a bug that you would like to track, click the Subscribe button.

Subscribed users are sent email notifications whenever the bug is updated.  I believe this answers your question about the Bugs Online issue.