Bug: App Opens Expense Report After Distance Creation

Hey guys! Let's dive into a quirky issue we've stumbled upon in the Expensify app. It's a bit of a head-scratcher, but that's what makes it fun to solve, right? This article walks you through a peculiar bug where the app unexpectedly opens an expense report after you create a distance expense from an empty report. We'll break down the steps to reproduce it, what we expected to happen, and what actually went down. So, grab your favorite beverage, and let's get started!

The Issue: Expense Report Misdirection

So, the main keyword here is that after creating a distance expense from scratch, the app is taking an unexpected detour. Instead of staying put in the workspace chat, it's whisking you away to the newly created expense report. This isn't exactly a deal-breaker, but it definitely disrupts the flow and could confuse our users. Imagine you're trying to quickly log a trip and suddenly find yourself in a different part of the app – a bit jarring, isn't it?

Why This Matters

You might be thinking, "Okay, so it opens a report. What's the big deal?" Well, user experience is all about creating a smooth and intuitive journey. When the app behaves in unexpected ways, it can lead to frustration and a sense of disorientation. In this case, users expect to remain in the workspace chat after creating an expense, ready to continue their workflow. By addressing this app expense report misdirection, we ensure a more seamless and enjoyable experience for everyone using Expensify.

Reproducibility and Scope

This bug is reproducible in the staging environment, which is great news for us because it means we can safely poke around and try to squash it without affecting our live users. Unfortunately, this bug unexpected app behavior isn't present in the production environment because the feature is still new. This gives us a golden opportunity to catch and fix it before it ever sees the light of day for our users. The issue has been observed across multiple platforms, including Android (mWeb Chrome), iOS (mWeb Safari), and various desktop environments (Windows, MacOS with Chrome/Safari). This wide-ranging impact underscores the importance of finding a solution that works consistently across different devices and browsers. The Applause Internal Team initially reported this, so a big shoutout to them for their keen eyes!

Steps to Recreate the Bug: Let's Go Bug Hunting!

Alright, let's get our hands dirty and try to reproduce this bug ourselves. Here’s the exact path we need to follow to trigger this behavior. Think of it as our little bug-hunting expedition!

1. Head to Staging: First things first, we need to venture into our staging environment. Go to staging.new.expensify.com. This is where we can play around without fear of breaking anything in the live app.
2. Workspace Chat: Once you're in staging, navigate to a workspace chat. This is our starting point for creating the expense.
3. Create a Report: Look for the '+' button – it's our gateway to new things. Click it and select "Create report." We're setting the stage for our expense creation.
4. Add a Distance Expense: Now, on the empty report, click "Add expense," then "Track expense," and finally choose "Manual." We're going old-school with a manual expense entry.
5. Create the Expense: The final step! Create a manual distance expense. This is the moment of truth where we'll see if the bug rears its head.

Expected vs. Actual: The Plot Twist

So, what should happen after we create that distance expense? We expect the app to stay right there in the workspace chat, ready for our next move. We're thinking smooth transitions and a seamless workflow, right? But here's where the plot thickens. The actual result is that the app throws us a curveball and opens the expense report we just created. It's like the app is saying, "Ta-da! Here's your report!" when we were expecting it to politely stay in the background.

Diving Deeper: Expected Result vs. Actual Result

Let's break down the discrepancy between what we expect and what actually happens. This is crucial for understanding the impact of the bug and how to best address it.

Expected Result: Staying in the Chat

The expected result is pretty straightforward: after creating the distance expense, the app should keep us in the workspace chat. This aligns with the natural flow of creating expenses and managing reports. Users often create multiple expenses or perform other tasks within the chat context, so staying put is the most intuitive behavior. It's like a well-mannered app that knows not to interrupt your workflow.

Actual Result: The Unexpected Detour

The actual result, however, is a bit of a detour. Instead of staying in the chat, the app opens the newly created expense report. This might seem like a minor issue, but it can disrupt the user's focus and workflow. Imagine you're in the middle of a conversation or planning other expenses – suddenly being taken to the report view can be disorienting. It's like being pulled away from a conversation mid-sentence.

The Impact of This Discrepancy

The key here is user experience. A smooth, predictable app is a happy app (and happy users!). This unexpected redirection can lead to a few potential issues:

• Loss of Context: Users might lose their train of thought or the context of the conversation in the chat.
• Increased Clicks: It adds an extra step to navigate back to the chat, increasing the number of clicks required to complete a task.
• Confusion: It can simply be confusing! Users might wonder why they were taken to the report view and what they're supposed to do next.

The Hunt for a Workaround

Currently, the workaround for this issue is unknown. This means that there isn't a simple, immediate solution that users can employ to avoid the unexpected redirection. This underscores the importance of fixing the bug itself, as users are essentially at the mercy of the app's behavior. Finding a workaround, if possible, would provide a temporary solution while the development team works on a permanent fix. It could involve navigating back to the chat manually or using a different method to create the expense, but without a known workaround, we need to focus on getting this bug squashed.

Platform Impact: A Widespread Issue

This bug isn't picky – it's showing up across a variety of platforms, which means we need a solution that's equally versatile. Here's a breakdown of where we've spotted it:

• [ ] Android: App
• [x] Android: mWeb Chrome
• [ ] iOS: App
• [x] iOS: mWeb Safari
• [ ] iOS: mWeb Chrome
• [x] Windows: Chrome
• [x] MacOS: Chrome / Safari
• [x] MacOS: Desktop

As you can see, it's affecting both mobile web (mWeb) and desktop environments, specifically in Chrome and Safari browsers. The Android and iOS native apps seem to be in the clear for now, which is a small win. But the widespread nature of this bug highlights the need for a comprehensive fix that addresses the underlying issue across different platforms and browsers. This ensures a consistent experience for all our users, regardless of how they access Expensify.

Visual Evidence: Screenshots and Videos

Sometimes, seeing is believing. To help illustrate the issue, we've got a handy screenshot/video that captures the bug in action:

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/3a6a9dc9-a40b-47e4-ba1a-736cd87430e0

This visual evidence provides a clear demonstration of the unexpected redirection, making it easier for developers to understand the problem and identify the root cause. It's like having a witness to the bug's behavior, providing valuable context and clarity.

Conclusion: Bug Squashing Time!

Alright, we've dissected the issue, walked through the steps to reproduce it, and highlighted its impact. Now it's time for the bug-squashing magic to happen! This unexpected redirection after creating a distance expense might seem like a small glitch, but addressing it will contribute to a smoother, more intuitive user experience within Expensify. Thanks for joining us on this bug hunt, and let's get this fixed!

If you're interested in contributing to Expensify and helping us squash bugs like this one, check out the open jobs on GitHub: View all open jobs on GitHub. You can also learn more about our contributing guidelines here.

For more information on expense reports and best practices, you can visit a trusted website like https://www.business.org/ for helpful resources.