To stay OT:I can not agree with that. Merlin is alone and also fixes a lot of errors from Asus. Also new futures, and in his spare time.
You can not test all the configurations. Thats true.
But Ping, traceroute is i think hardware independent.
Software and firmware is often released or in use with a (long) list of known issues. I bet Asus and Merlin also have a list of known issues in AsusWRT. Items in such a list are usually categorised or prioritised like:
- Safety, security or primary function related (to be fixed as soon as possible or before the release date).
- Issues with a work around or with seldom used functions (to be fixed in a next release).
- Nice to have or for future consideration (often new functions or enhancements, to be implemented when time and budget allows).
Usual the known issues list is not at all or only partly published.
Further I can tell you many software issues are related to totally unexpected relations within the software, some examples:
- A change in module A is for sure not expected to have an effect on module B. After the changes in module A, module B will not be tested. During use of module B a new issue is found which after deeper investigation is related to the changes in module A.
- New software is tested according a pre defined test protocol (test this, in that way and check for an expected result). In the wild users appear to use equipment in such a way which the developers and testers never thought of: a user presses buttons 1, 4 and 6 together simply out of boredom and initiates a crash of the equipment. Where the developper never intended and never tested the pressing of these buttons at the same time.
- Have you ever written a book, a manual or tutorial? Of course you read and re-read again to correct the typos and other faults. Others can read and check. Even then, you may after years find a typo or other fault in what you have written.