<x-charset ISO646-US> I have more years in the software development business with a really big company (IBM) than I care to acknowledge. The terms Alpha test, Beta test, etc. have very formal definitions in professional software development circles. The terms have been adopted by smaller organizations and individuals, sometimes with modifications in meaning.
Every professional software product goes through several development phases: Functional Specs, Component development, Alpha testing, Beta testing, Release. The product function and organization are fully documented in the Functional Spec phase. Once the specs are agreed to and approved, components are developed and usually tested in-house, using specially designed interface modules. Component test is done entirely by the developers. The Alpha cycle combines all of the modules into a working (hopefully) program and the developers work out interface and function problems with the in-house test group. Once the product seems to work, it is passed to the professional quality assurance/product test group which is not part of development. This test cycle is called Beta test. The testers ensure the product does exactly what the specs say it should and create test plans that are supposed to uncover any hidden flaws. Sometimes, but not always, a product that seems to work is released to trusted users to test it in real world conditions. The active old saying is, "It's impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so inventive", so the testers are anxious to find as many qualified users as possible to uncover hidden flaws in either design or implementation. Bug reports are formally written and the developers are expected to fix them and periodically include the fixes in a new Beta release. This can be a long, tedious and fractious period for a product with 100's of millions of lines of code. Once all the bugs are fixed the final test is called "release test" where the final Beta level is expected to do everything the specs say it should do and it should perform well. No really big program is ever completely bug free and quality development organizations have highly professional procedures to report bugs and track fixes. The fixes are collected into releases that are shipped when there is enough additional value to justify the expense. Experience often points out new functions that should be included and a new version is released when there is enough new function. In this sense, Windows XP is just a new version of Windows 95. In my experience, the software development phase process is best executed by small teams (fewer than 100 developers) or individuals. Very large development efforts require a different organization. For example, a hugely complex system such as the Internal Revenue tax processing system needs a very different development approach than a data base management program. I personally prefer small programs to be released using a version.release notation since they are not developed using a formal release system. V1.1, V1.2, V1.3, V2.1, V2.2, etc. Yes, I know this is off topic for sundials, but it's hard to stop once you get rolling. Best regards, Jim From: John Carmichael <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Thu Jul 28 09:57:54 CDT 2005 To: Helmut Sonderegger <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: Sundial List <[email protected]> Subject: Re: New version of software SONNE Hello Helmut:?I'm not real good with the terms you programmers use.? Could you please explain to us beginners what the term "beta-version"means?? Is there some other version that's not as good??Who should download this beta version?? Does it matter what operating system one?has??thanks,?John?? ----- Original Message ----- From: Helmut Sonderegger To: [email protected] Sent: Wednesday, July 27, 2005 12:14 PM Subject: New version of software SONNE Dear sundial friends, ? a?new beta-version of my software SONNE is ready for download from my webpage ( http://web.utanet.at/sondereh?). I added the construction of simple ring?sundials (in German "Bauernringe" = farmers rings)?. ? Hints on possible improvements, errors, bugs, .... are welcome.? ? Thanks Helmut Sonderegger Sonnengasse 24,? A-6800 Feldkirch 47.25 N,?? 9.59 E ? James E. Morrison [EMAIL PROTECTED] Astrolabe web site at astrolabes.org - </x-charset>
