- It's been out for almost five years.
- It's got tens of millions of users
- I suspect several businesses rely on it.
How is it still "beta"? At what point will it no longer be beta? When it completely owns the e-mail market?
views:
516answers:
7
+3
A:
Well it was down for 30 hours about two months ago. Looks like even after five years there are a few kinks to iron out.
Kyle Cronin
2008-12-05 21:30:01
+11
A:
According to a Google spokesman:
"We have very high internal metrics our consumer products have to meet before coming out of beta. Our teams continue to work to improve these products and provide users with an even better experience. We believe beta has a different meaning when applied to applications on the Web, where people expect continual improvements in a product. On the Web, you don't have to wait for the next version to be on the shelf or an update to become available. Improvements are rolled out as they're developed. Rather than the packaged, stagnant software of decades past, we're moving to a world of regular updates and constant feature refinement where applications live in the cloud."
Wikipedia defines Beta Version as:
A 'beta version' is the first version released outside the organization or community that develops the software, for the purpose of evaluation or real-world black/grey-box testing. The process of delivering a beta version to the users is called beta release. Beta level software generally includes all features, but may also include known issues and bugs of a less serious variety.
So this confirms that Google's use of the word is non-standard. I found this Slashdot article, Has Google Redefined Beta?, to be pretty interesting.
I think Google borrowed the word for their own ends and it shouldn't be taken at face value with the traditional definition of "Beta". It simply looks better to put "Beta" by your apps name instead of, "We are still constantly adding features to this product".
Simucal
2008-12-05 21:30:06
Interesting. Though it seems to me that continuously improving your product wouldn't necessarily imply carrying the "beta" tag. Taken literally, this would mean that all web apps should essentially always be "beta."
JohnMcG
2008-12-05 21:37:48
@JohnMcG, Yes, it does seem that would be the case. I think Google more borrowed the word for their own purposes-meaning than anything. Beta simply sounds better than, "We aren't done adding new features yet".
Simucal
2008-12-05 21:45:32
I liked the conclusion of that article, "Either that or their explanation is still in beta."
JohnMcG
2008-12-05 21:50:40
I call marketeering shenanigans.
annakata
2008-12-05 21:57:02
@annakata, exactly.
Simucal
2008-12-05 22:04:27
I always figured it's an easy and inexpensive safeguard against getting sued for data loss or something similar: "We said it was beta, right there on the front!"
Jeffrey Martinez
2008-12-05 23:27:34
A:
I suspect that beta, in this case, means that they are avoiding the hassles and complications of being accused of being a monopoly. Conspiracy anybody?
Pete OHanlon
2008-12-05 21:58:04
Gmail is far from being a monopoly. The last stats I saw (Feb 2008) showed Yahoo having over 50% of webmail market share. Hotmail/Live had 20%ish. Gmail was a distant third with 5%.
ceejayoz
2008-12-07 03:49:56
+1
A:
Google itself was in beta for years. The founders have much higher standards for their products than other companies.
Nighthawk
2008-12-05 23:08:58
+1
A:
Just like C++ wasn't a standard for quite a while :) Also, they continuously add and change features, so it is a beta.
Uri
2008-12-05 23:09:59
A:
It is (at least officially) in perpetual beta state. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perpetual_beta
Csaba Kétszeri
2009-04-03 10:12:57
A:
its not in beta anymore since July 2009 - so if you're seeing a 'beta' logo still its because someone enabled the 'back to beta' feature. Yes really...
Simon_Weaver
2010-01-18 23:42:58
And this question was asked in December 2008, at which point it still was labeled as Beta ;-)
tomlog
2010-01-19 14:43:30