[TopAce]

My method is this:
1. Get the most recent _d build (obviously )
2. See if there are no error messages till the pilot screen
3. Go through all the custom ships in the F3 window, fixing errors one by one
4. Quit, go back to 2 again to see if I forgot something. If everything is okay...
5. ...sigh of relief

How are ya guys doin' it?

[General Battuta]

Load the missions tooo

[MatthTheGeek]

If you have done changes to tables, you might need to resave every mission in FRED (renamed subsystems for example).

[Fury]

Loading up missions in debug fred2_open is usually best method to catch problems in development phase. It loads up so much more data than simply getting to pilot screen and going through ships one-by-one in the lab.

Once you're past development and into final testing prior to release, finishing each mission in debug build would be smart move. Bugs in complex sexps or scripts may not be caught until they're actually ran in-game. Other bugs that might only get caught while playing include bugs in models, such as buggered up collision detection.

[The E]

For quick model testing, I have a mission with all the models in it. That will catch all model-related issues.

As for other bugs, since I build all my builds myself, I can launch straight into Visual Studio when an Error comes up that I can't decipher using the log alone.