Revolution Beta Is Back
New program to offer more interaction with RunRev

by Bill Marriott

Fresh on the heels of a successful "open beta" program for Revolution 2.9, Runtime Revolution is today announcing the opportunity for customers to test the upcoming version of Revolution that will feature dramatic new graphics enhancements, an all-new script editor, multi-dimensional arrays, and many other improvements. (Read more about it here.)

The previous program signed up more than 800 testers, and generated a mountain of feedback that was very useful for assessing areas of the product that needed attention. At the conclusion of the test, Revolution 2.9 won the highest marks for satisfaction and quality of any previous release.

But there was some room for improvement. At times, the number of reports in the Quality Control Center was overwhelming, and the beta category of the peer-to-peer forum, while getting mostly positive reviews in surveys, was clearly the weakest link in the communication chain.

"We had a lot of good reports from the beta test," said Mark Waddinghman, Runtime Revolution Director of Technology. "But we also had a lot of reports that weren't actionable, either because they did not provide enough information, were not reproducible, or were simply feature requests."

Access to pre-release versions of Revolution has historically been an exclusive benefit of holding an Enterprise license. As Revolution evolves, having early access to development work enables developers more time to adapt to changes, and weigh-in on design decisions.

In fact, Enterprise users have already seen a couple preview editions of the new Revolution (code named "Bernard") over the past month or so. Their comments have already influenced implementation of many of the new features.

Nevertheless, there is a benefit to having a wider audience test pre-release software, especially when substantial changes are being made to the script editor and branding. Therefore, Runtime Revolution will be launching another beta test for Bernard, with the following changes:

• The previous beta was open to everyone, including those who have never purchased Revolution. The Bernard beta will be open only to those who have an active Revolution Studio or Enterprise license.
• Approval for beta testers will not be automatic. Applicants will need to supply their recent license code and describe why they wish to join the beta test. (Active Enterprise licensees receive automatic access to beta versions via the "Check for Updates" command in the Help menu.)
• Participants will need to actively download, test, and provide feedback on the software to continue their enrollment. Previously, participatory elements (such as completing beta surveys) were optional.
• The forum category dedicated to the beta test will be made private for approved testers only. However, new with the beta prgram, RunRev engineers will be actively participating in the forum, to encourage discussion and to have more rapid turnaround response to issues.

"Although the changes make the beta less 'open' in some ways, we hope to have a richer dialogue with those who do participate," said Kevin Miller, CEO. "Users had a lot of impact on the product with the last beta, and we want to make sure they have even more in the future."

To make your voice heard and shape the future of Revolution, apply for the beta test here.