http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=1057154


in reply to Re: Is bug report a contribution?
in thread Is bug report a contribution?

There is actually a third purpose:

Bug reports help the users who run into a problem to find out what circumstances trigger the bug.

Often you google for an error message, and if the bug report states the preconditions/circumstances of the bug, that can often serve to find a workaround.