On Wed, 3 Sep 2003, Sam Joseph wrote:
> >How about a free beta release with easy feedback?
> >
> Well that's what we were working on, but there is an ongoing argument
> about whether beta-release people should be expected to handle technical
> errors.
> At the moment we are hoping to have completed technical testing before
> doing usability testing, i.e. so that people can give us feedback on the
> nature and usability of the application, rather than on technical errors.
Perhaps it should be called something other than "beta". As long as the
users are expecting technical errors, and the release is as limited as
possible (to avoid duplicate frustration), I think it's okay. E.g., it's
the norm for open source software.
But there should be a release note listing the platforms that have been
tested and the results. A credit by each platform might encourage
feedback of the results.
Of course, if there are bugs on lots of platforms to which you don't have
access, and it's not open source, then this kind of testing won't do you
much good. But if the bugs are on just a few other platforms, then you
could buy just those for troubleshooting.
11011011
Received on Wed Sep 3 11:19:00 2003