Based on looking through the code, I notice that the Severity number is based on an aggregate of the severity of a bug multiplied by a qualifying factor. More severe bugs will carry a greater weight.
The False number is also based on a similar calculation, but for each bug reported that really is not a bug, the multiplier quoted above is multiplied by a "gotcha" number, meaning that the punishment is greater than the crime.# These are our overall "values" for severities and non-bug results
$t_severity_multiplier[FEATURE] = 1;
$t_severity_multiplier[TRIVIAL] = 2;
$t_severity_multiplier[TEXT] = 3;
$t_severity_multiplier[TWEAK] = 2;
$t_severity_multiplier[MINOR] = 5;
$t_severity_multiplier[MAJOR] = 8;
$t_severity_multiplier[CRASH] = 8;
$t_severity_multiplier[BLOCK] = 10;
$t_severity_multiplier['average'] = 5;
Finally, Total is the simple difference between Severity and False.$t_notbug_multiplier[UNABLE_TO_DUPLICATE] = 2;
$t_notbug_multiplier[DUPLICATE] = 3;
$t_notbug_multiplier[NOT_A_BUG] = 5;
My concern is this: for a Reporter that reports few issues where many of them are duplicates or we are not able to reproduce the bug, then it is possible to have a negative effectiveness based on the summary screen. It is my opinion that this may be taken in the wrong context and a "why bother" position may be adopted to reporting bugs. I suggest that the False number should be closer to a percentage of the Severity number, for example 0.75. This way, there is credit for making the effort to communicate the bugs and a "penalty" may still be imposed if that is the desire. At this point, the code is not setup for fractional numbers and the above factors are not definable at the config_inc.php level.
I also believe that Effectiveness is best represented as a percentage, not a whole number. A calculation of this would be: Severity/Total*100.
I welcome comments on my thoughts.
Thank you.