What does "debugging" refer to in software development?

Debugging in software development refers to the identification and removal of errors from software, which directly affects the program's functionality and performance. This process is essential because it ensures that the software runs correctly and meets the intended specifications. Errors, also known as bugs, can arise from various aspects of coding and logic, leading to unexpected behavior, crashes, or performance issues.

In order to debug effectively, developers often use a variety of tools and techniques to trace and fix these problems. This includes utilizing debugging tools, inserting breakpoints to analyze runtime behavior, and running tests to confirm that the issues have been resolved. Without proper debugging, software can remain flawed, resulting in poor user experience and increased maintenance costs.

The other choices pertain to different aspects of software development but do not accurately define debugging. Adding new features focuses on enhancing the software's capabilities, writing code in clean languages is related to coding style, and analyzing programming logic is about understanding how a program operates rather than fixing it. Thus, debugging is specifically about error identification and correction.