What is "beta" software?

I have the time and interest. Should I help Merriam-Webster or AOL or whoever as a "beta" tester?

Short answer. Neither a borrower nor a beta tester be¹. Beta software is pre-release software which by definition contains bugs!

Long answer. Every responsible manufacturer -- Installations Plus+ included -- puts its new software through rigorous laboratory testing before releasing it officially to the public. But a manufacturer's laboratory and his generally experienced testers can't hope to duplicate the range of conditions and circumstances that exist in the "outside world". So before the final release, it is customary to enlist the aid of interested volunteers -- beta testers -- to put the new software through real-world torture-testing.

The idea is to get the beta tester to find and to report -- often in excessively boring detail -- the bugs, the problems with the new software that weren't uncovered in the laboratory.

The primary benefit to the beta tester is the opportunity to try new software for free. The downside of the benefit is that the kinds of bugs a beta tester routinely encounters are interactions with other software in everyday use on his PC. In other words, beta-testing a new statistics package may generate problems with your word processor which can only be resolved by laboriously un-installing both and then re-installing your word processor. Beta software usually works just fine in a stand-alone mode. What the manufacturer couldn't simulate in his laboratory were the everyday conditions that exist on your computer.

The secondary benefit to the beta tester is the opportunity to do something nice for a whole lot of someone elses. We think if you have time on your hands and want to do something nice, you should help the homebound, the hospitalized, the illiterate, etc. Software manufacturers and the folks who pay good money for their software don't need your charity.

Which modem do you recommend?

My 14400 baud modem just doesn't cut it anymore. I see that there are new 56600 baud modems available everywhere. Which one should I buy?

Short answer. Either hold on to your modem or buy a -- cost-effective -- 28800.

Long answer. We considered this question last month but didn't offer specific low-cost models to buy if you really want/need to upgrade now.

It's rare that we recommend an "interim fix", but this is one of those cases. The new 56600 modems are expensive at about $200 for the top models, but there is no standard in place for this technology. We suggest you replace your 14400 modem with a 28800 (33600) modem which has hardware error correction and data compression. You can do this yourself for under $100. We have tested and recommend models from GVC/Maxtech and from Acer/Wisecom, and can supply the latter installed, and configured for data and fax, at $125.

1. If you chose to become a beta-tester, we respectfully request that you try to resolve the conflicts on your PC with the software manufacturer before contacting Installations Plus+ for help.

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• The November, 1996 PC Tips on Laser Printers
• The December, 1996 PC Tips on Buying a Personal Computer
• The January, 1997 PC Tips on Computer Viruses
• The February, 1997 PC Tips on Deleting Files and DLL Problems
• The March, 1997 PC Tips on the "Hole" in Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Windows Error Messages
• The April, 1997 PC Tips on "Frequently Asked Questions and Their Answers
• "Highway Robbery," Nathaniel Wice's TIME Digital Magazine undercover investigation of sleazy computer "salesmanship", which appeared in the November, 1996 issue
• "Does Not Compute," Michael Maren's New York Magazine article on selecting a PC repair shop, which appeared in the November, 1996 issue

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