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

[JGIGS]

I just want a few tweaks. Mostly more customization. Pretty simple stuff like like let me place icons where I want like all at the bottom so I don't waste time with a glitchy double tap to bring the icons down to open something. let me set custom alert sounds for third party apps. Some simple springboard widgets like a larger clock, weather and calendar would be nice too. Other jailbreak customization apps like winterboard would be nice too but that would be asking for too much.

Or I guess I could just go back to android which would be an easier decision if hangouts gets sms compatibility on computers like imessage but there are other apps like mighty text that bridge that gap.

It pains me as a die hard apple guy that android has a better os than ios now.

 

[andreiru]

It's the right direction to take. Will save the impatient of us from having to look for ways to install unstable betas. Will also give Apple a more official way of collecting data and squashing all these inevitable and pesky bugs. Excellent.

 

[576316]

That's really cool. I enjoyed following the Yosemite public beta but that's only because it was such a huge change and I wanted to run it straight away! I opted out of that one now because I'm not bothered about beta testing OS X. But I'm more willing to run regular beta versions of iOS on my devices!

 

[Keirasplace]

Aaaaaaaand commence all high schoolers installing iOS 9 on their phones when it's simply not ready yet. Then they all throw their iPhones off a bridge, say that they've "Gone Galaxy" and are "never going back to iPhone" and then, when iOS 9 comes out, everyone is too scared to upgrade and then adoption is slow and Apple is doomed and then oh wait they're making a car?

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But in all seriousness, I ain't about that beta life no mo. It's overrated.

Melodramatic aren't we? It won'T be so easy to get the beta and it will be pretty easy to downgrade. No violins need be used for the melodramatic counterpoint.

 

[teslo]

You are one of the few people that needs your phone for work, really..?

i think he meant he believes he takes his reliance on his phone for work more seriously than others, not that his reliance on his phone is unique. many people who complain about betas seemingly fail to realize they did it to themselves. and that it's not a public release, so why bother complaining and bashing apple for it? additionally, this type of bloviating is fairly easy to distinguish from legitimate discussion about bugs.

 

[Traverse]

I'm on 8.3 and I'm pretty sure it's more stable than 8.1.3. Which says a lot about the current public builds. They dropped the ball into a black hole with iOS 8...

I'm really glad to hear that. iOS 8 has been especially buggy on my iPad.

 

[hlfway2anywhere]

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!!!!

When people go camping or hiking and get bit by mosquitos, they will probably complain about the mosquitos. Because they are annoying. It doesn't mean they shouldn't go outside, and it doesn't mean they weren't aware that there would be mosquitos. It just means that sometimes bugs are annoying and as a communicative species, we like to talk to share experiences in conversation.

I'm pretty sure whether it comes to running betas, or camping/hiking, nobody EXPECTS it to be bug free. It would be naive to think people expect otherwise.

 

[Paradoxally]

Good, please let iOS 9 be the next iOS 6 (disregarding UI): fast and rock solid.

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Yosemite is great.

A great mess, yes.

I really hope Apple make OS'es like Snow Leopard again. That was the best version I've ever used.

 

[macduke]

Well, if they're mostly focusing on stability and performance improvements for iOS 9, and they've been working on it over the past year, then beta testing iOS 9 shouldn't be any worse than iOS 8. Unless it breaks many existing apps, count me in. I'm excited for iOS 9 because I think it's going to lay the foundation for the merge in iOS X.

 

[crsh1976]

Aaaaaaaand commence all high schoolers installing iOS 9 on their phones when it's simply not ready yet. Then they all throw their iPhones off a bridge, say that they've "Gone Galaxy" and are "never going back to iPhone" and then, when iOS 9 comes out, everyone is too scared to upgrade and then adoption is slow and Apple is doomed and then oh wait they're making a car?

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But in all seriousness, I ain't about that beta life no mo. It's overrated.

It's definitely the major issue with public beta programs, some use them to get access to the latest and shiniest features, but either don't understand or don't want to understand that it's beta, may not work as intended, that it may even brick their device in the worst cases.

And the feedback, in my experience, isn't all that useful - it generates a ton of noise to filter through and manage for the QAs.

But hey, public betas are gold for PR and tech sites.

 

[rwilliams]

j

You are one of the few people that needs your phone for work, really..?

I think the "few" was more in reference to avoiding using betas more than needing to use his phone for work.

 

[unplugme71]

From past experience, I usually find the 3rd beta release is stable enough to use on a primary device. The first 2 have always been troublesome.

 

[Paradoxally]

And the feedback, in my experience, isn't all that useful - it generates a ton of noise to filter through and manage for the QAs.

But hey, public betas are gold for PR and tech sites.

Absolutely. Apple don't care about the public who test these betas at all, that was shown in the Yosemite public beta. I bet most bug radars don't even get more than a skim through. The GP should not be messing about with betas anyway.

They do, however, care about PR from big tech websites, like you mentioned.

 

[sualpine]

Good, please let iOS 9 be the next iOS 6 (disregarding UI): fast and rock solid.

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A great mess, yes.

I really hope Apple make OS'es like Snow Leopard again. That was the best version I've ever used.

Snow Leopard had plenty of bugs too. People have short memories.

http://www.informationweek.com/desktop/snow-leopard-causes-spinning-wheel-of-death/d/d-id/1082817?

https://tidbits.com/article/10642

http://www.macworld.com/article/1143116/fontproblems_snowleopard.html

You sound like someone that complained back then, forgot about it, and now have a false memory of how good it was. This effect is known as "rosy retrospection." You have to conscious about it to fight it.

 

[BvizioN]

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.

It would be a lot easy to distinguish a complain from a simple discussion of that discussion didn't start with "I'm sick of Apple not fixing......."

 

[Chupa Chupa]

Calling the AppleSeed program "public" is inaccurate. True it's beta s/w tested by non-devs, but it's an invitation only program unlike last year's OS X public beta which was open to anyone who signed up before a stated time.

 

[hlfway2anywhere]

It would be a lot easy to distinguish a complain from a simple discussion of that discussion didn't start with "I'm sick of Apple not fixing......."

I'm sick of Apple not fixing a lot of things. Is there some issue with expressing and discussing that with other people who are also affected by the same glitches?

 

[Nickerbocker]

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.

Ah yes. The "It's still in beta" response. That's up there with "Google it" responses. Love, love, LOVE IT when I do a Google search and the first link leads to a forum posts with asshats saying "Google it."

 

[pgiguere1]

PSA: If you choose to run a beta OS, some third-party apps may crash or not work as intended. Don't leave negative App Store reviews for those apps, they aren't supposed to support unreleased OSes.

 

[macduke]

It would be neat if we got an early release this year for iOS 9. Early versions of iPhone OS were beta tested in the spring and then released around WWDC, usually shortly after when the new iPhone came out. Since this release is so focused on performance and stability, perhaps they could release it publicly at WWDC and then release the iPhone 6S with iOS 9.1 which would contain any new features exclusive to that model. Apple released the original iPad on a special version of iOS 3.2.

I'm not saying I want them to rush it though. If they need the time then by all means, take your time Apple. iOS needs it and deserves it. I just hope they can roll in any fixes they possibly can for 8.3.

 

[Rychiar]

iOS8 was a boring release. most people who stuck with 7 don't even know the difference really. they could've at least gotten it stable. why release 9 at all? just keep optimizing 8

 

[Paradoxally]

Snow Leopard had plenty of bugs too. People have short memories.

You sound like someone that complained back then, forgot about it, and now have a false memory of how good it was. This effect is known as "rosy retrospection." You have to conscious about it to fight it.

No, I didn't complain back then. It definitely had bugs upon release, I didn't say that. Most were fixed by 10.6.2 or 10.6.3. It wasn't perfect, but it certainly didn't lag.

All I know is that we're already on 10.10.2, and my rMBP is a mess. Yosemite lags after a few hours, a problem which Apple should have solved ages ago. Not to mention all the other bugs that people report in the appropriate sub-forum.

I kid you not, Windows 8.1 runs better on my retina Mac than Yosemite does. It's a sad state of affairs when Microsoft's hated OS (for the most part) has great performance, and Yosemite can't even run for a few hours without Mission Control getting all laggy on me. Apple have had no focus lately.

 

[BvizioN]

I'm sick of Apple not fixing a lot of things. Is there some issue with expressing and discussing that with other people who are also affected by the same glitches?

There you go, you just proved my point. There is just not hope on people.

 

[Paradoxally]

iOS8 was a boring release. most people who stuck with 7 don't even know the difference really. they could've at least gotten it stable. why release 9 at all? just keep optimizing 8

That's what 9 supposedly is for. Remember iOS 6? It was meant to improve on 5's groundbreaking features. Then people complained "bla bla not enough innovation" and we got the mess that was iOS 7. In retrospect, iOS 7 now is a dream compared to 8.

 

[hlfway2anywhere]

It would be a lot easy to distinguish a complain from a simple discussion of that discussion didn't start with "I'm sick of Apple not fixing......."

I'm sick of Apple not fixing a lot of things. Is there some issue with expressing and discussing that with other people who are also affected by the same glitches?

There you go, you just proved my point. There is just not hope on people.

Perhaps you're confused... this is a forum. It's a place where people with similar interests communicate. So, sometimes people do that, and it's, well, perfectly acceptable.