Alpha and Beta
About a decade ago, you would have seen many websites showcasing “beta” labels with logos to indicate that the website is still in the testing phase and not launched fully. Slideshare which inspired me to launch edocr.com displayed beta label for many years. This trend of displaying alpha and beta labels have dropped out of fashion many years ago.
According to ChatGPT,
Alpha and beta releases, are typically used in software development to denote different stages of testing and deployment. An alpha release is an early version of a product that is released to a limited group of users for testing and feedback. A beta release is a more advanced version of the product that is released to a wider group of users for additional testing and feedback before the final product is released.
edocr Alpha was the version I was given access to in September 2007 for testing and trialling. We went live with a slightly improved Alpha version in October 2007. It had so many bugs and was not performance tested. I saw many users struggling to upload documents. I remember apologising to users for the shoddiness of the product.
The same happened with my latest product, SkilledUp Life. I hacked WordPress over three days and went live on 1st Aug 2020. Today, we are still using this alpha version. And once again, I have been apologising to our customers. We now have a plan to improve the current Alpha version.
Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs)
Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) are a standardised way of measuring the maturity of a technology and it can also be adopted for software applications. It was originally developed by NASA and used in many of InnovateUK backed projects, as well as European grant funded projected.
The 9 TRLs are:
- Basic principles observed and reported
- Technology concept and/or application formulated
- Analytical and experimental critical function and/or characteristic proof of concept
- Component and/or breadboard validation in laboratory environment
- Component and/or breadboard validation in relevant environment
- System/subsystem model or prototype demonstration in a relevant environment (ground or space)
- System prototype demonstration in a space environment
- Actual system completed and “flight qualified” through test and demonstration
- Actual system “flight proven” through successful mission operations
The goal of a tech startup is to reach TRL6 where the software application can be trialled. This milestone is typically used for raising funding and moving towards commercialisation.
When asked for a comparison, ChatGPT comments
- Alpha stage: Alpha versions of a software product are typically considered to be at TRL 2 or 3, where the technology concept and/or application have been formulated, and analytical and experimental critical functions and/or characteristic proof of concept have been demonstrated.
- Beta stage: Beta versions of a software product are typically considered to be at TRL 4 or 5, where component and/or breadboard validation has been conducted in a laboratory or relevant environment. This stage of development is characterized by testing and validation of the software in a controlled environment to identify and fix bugs, and gather feedback from a limited group of users.
In the case of SkilledUp Life, the highest TRL I am happy to refer to would be around TRL6 or 7.