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Apple to Launch Public Beta Testing Programs for iOS 8.3 and iOS 9 [Updated]

This is very, very bad. The public cannot handle betas. And now it will affect their phones.
 
They can't even the official releases done without issues. Why on earth would I consider loading their beta OS?
 
sualpine said:
This is very, very bad. The public cannot handle betas. And now it will affect their phones.
Click to expand...

I have that concern as well. An everyday user will sign up for the beta not completely grasping what they're getting into and then will get mad at Apple for "crappy software," which could potentially hurt their reputation.

I suppose they can try to avoid this by forcing to user to acknowledge (multiple times) that this is test software that will contain issues, but some/many people just tap "okay".

Perhaps they could require the install via iTunes, that would weed out many non-techy people since many of them probably just use OTA updates.
 
At least now they will release bug-ridden software to the public with a beta tag! :)
 
Further proof that Apple is stretched so thin that they don't have the chops to squash bugs like they used to. Either that or their competence in software engineering is going dowwwwwwwn hill. Usually .0 releases are the public betas.

Very very odd. Let the customers help us figure it out while we let Wall Street control our company.
 
Razeus said:
They can't even the official releases done without issues. Why on earth would I consider loading their beta OS?
Click to expand...

Because betas are all about testing and finding bugs so official releases have fewer bugs?
 
BlendedFrog said:
You need to write an email to Tim Cook and explain in 100 words or less why you should be picked. Make sure you don't use big words but spelling and grammar must be correct.
Click to expand...

Dear Mr. Cook,

I'd like to test iOS 9 on my iPhone 3GS.

Thank you.

:eek:
 
jonnyb098 said:
Further proof that Apple is stretched so thin that they don't have the chops to squash bugs like they used to. Either that or their competence in software engineering is going dowwwwwwwn hill. Usually .0 releases are the public betas.

Very very odd. Let the customers help us figure it out while we let Wall Street control our company.
Click to expand...

You sound like the perfect candidate for the beta!
 
I can't see this going well. SO many people are going to install beta versions of iOS and be surprised when it crashes, has bugs, etc.
 
Traverse said:
I have that concern as well. An everyday user will sign up for the beta not completely grasping what they're getting into and then will get mad at Apple for "crappy software," which could potentially hurt their reputation.

I suppose they can try to avoid this by forcing to user to acknowledge (multiple times) that this is test software that will contain issues, but some/many people just tap "okay".

Perhaps they could require the install via iTunes, that would weed out many non-techy people since many of them probably just use OTA updates.
Click to expand...

You really thing the average user will do that? I don't even do it for Windows 10 betas (and I'm an engineer). Somehow doubt Johnny Average will be doing the extra steps to get these things on their phones.
 
Traverse said:
I have that concern as well. An everyday user will sign up for the beta not completely grasping what they're getting into and then will get mad at Apple for "crappy software," which could potentially hurt their reputation.

I suppose they can try to avoid this by forcing to user to acknowledge (multiple times) that this is test software that will contain issues, but some/many people just tap "okay".

Perhaps they could require the install via iTunes, that would weed out many non-techy people since many of them probably just use OTA updates.
Click to expand...

Well the rumor claims they're going to limit it to something like 100,000 users. I'm sure if they do this there will be disclaimers galore. And considering these upcoming releases don't appear to be full of new features or new UI design the interest in downloading it probably won't be as high.
 
hlfway2anywhere said:
And even if MacRumors designates forums for beta testers there will still be people who insist on posting in every thread that "it's a beta" and that somehow discussing bugs is "complaining." Can't wait.
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I was just going to post this:

Oh great, now we are going to get a bunch of people who don't understand it is a beta complaining that there are bugs.

Big difference between discussing bugs in a beta (good thing) and having the expectation that the beta should be free of bugs (very bad thing).

Please don't download either of these to you daily driver devices!!!!
 
sualpine said:
This is very, very bad. The public cannot handle betas. And now it will affect their phones.
Click to expand...

i doubt that too many clueless people will get it. i mean its not like apple is gonna push it as an update and ask "do you want to participate in the beta program on iOS. click yes to install beta xy" people would actually have to search and look for it with the average user not bothering to do so ^^

i think its a good idea. more people to find and report bugs before the actual release. it seems to have worked somewhat okay for Yosemite (DO NOT MENTION WIFI PROBLEMS) unlike the iOS 8 release
 
Keirasplace said:
The general public, no; but, public in this case doesn't mean grandma will somehow install it by accident...
Click to expand...

No, but their kids will. OR grandkids. And the people that "THINK" they are advanced will install it, and then complain. Believe me, this isn't a win.
 
All the holier than thou developers on here who think their special and talk down to people who want to run betas heads may explode.
 
sualpine said:
No, but their kids will. OR grandkids. And the people that "THINK" they are advanced will install it, and then complain. Believe me, this isn't a win.
Click to expand...

You concerns are unwarranted, believe me, especially if people can easily put back the original version (which they would).

By the time a software gets to a public beta, the major catastrophic bugs have been squashed. What remains is not too dissimilar to what Apple released for IOS 8. One could argue IOS 8 was a public Beta (just much larger in scope than Apple intended ;-).

That is the issue. Apple released IOS 8 without squashing hundreds of nitpick bugs that mostly appear in wider release. They can't find those bugs as easily in house. Those Beta release are meant to avoid releasing as many small annoying bugs for IOS 9.
 
Keirasplace said:
You really thing the average user will do that? I don't even do it for Windows 10 betas (and I'm an engineer). Somehow doubt Johnny Average will be doing the extra steps to get these things on their phones.
Click to expand...

Well, as Rogifan said, iOS 9 shouldn't have anything flashy to attract users, but yes I don't think some unaware users would do that.

If they heard from their friend, who heard it from a friend, you read on a blog, that "new iPhone OS is out and looks cool" they may install it unwittingly.
 
Good too see. I have been impressed with products that have had public betas
 
Traverse said:
I have that concern as well. An everyday user will sign up for the beta not completely grasping what they're getting into and then will get mad at Apple for "crappy software," which could potentially hurt their reputation.

I suppose they can try to avoid this by forcing to user to acknowledge (multiple times) that this is test software that will contain issues, but some/many people just tap "okay".

Perhaps they could require the install via iTunes, that would weed out many non-techy people since many of them probably just use OTA updates.
Click to expand...

I think we're all overlooking this. They're going to start with the 8.3 beta maybe in the next few weeks, and then at WWDC they'll announce iOS 9, release to developers, and won't do the public betas until after the first public release of it. They understand how messy betas can be, especially when after everyone wanted to get a head start on iCloud Messages and then pretty much trashed the App Store with negative reviews, and they get that people actually use their devices and don't have them sitting around like developers do.

There are a lot of little problems on iOS here and there, when developers are mostly thinking about testing their apps, and the issues they have while doing so, those things are easily overlooked. So they want more people using it.

I could see them doing it through TestFlight.
 
If true, I will probably sign up for it. Not on my primary and critically important device (iPhone), but will gladly experiment with my iPad Air 2. :)
 
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