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Subject: Re: The privilege of beacoming a beta-tester

Author: Uri Blass

Date: 11:35:53 09/05/00

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On September 05, 2000 at 14:10:50, Eddie wrote:

>On September 05, 2000 at 14:04:06, Uri Blass wrote:
>
>>On September 05, 2000 at 13:57:55, Eddie wrote:
>>
>>>On September 05, 2000 at 13:53:43, Uri Blass wrote:
>>>
>>>>On September 05, 2000 at 13:46:53, Enrique Irazoqui wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>On September 05, 2000 at 13:31:56, Eddie wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>On September 05, 2000 at 12:04:50, Enrique Irazoqui wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>One day someone may write a book about the sociology of computer chess. Well,
>>>>>>>maybe the topic is not interesting enough for a book, but at least an article
>>>>>>>could be fascinating. A few paragraphs should relate to beta-testing and the
>>>>>>>relationship between CC freaks and programmers. Fernando: are you interested?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Months ago, Uri posted that he expected to be paid for his collaboration with
>>>>>>>the development of chess programs. It made me smile, because beta-testing is
>>>>>>>supposed to be a privilege for the tester, although I never quite understood why
>>>>>>>it works this way. But it does. From one day to the next, a freak may be
>>>>>>>promoted to the "in" circle, improve his status to the imaginary rank of expert
>>>>>>>and get the ensuing ego-booster, but he has to pay a price. I have seen private
>>>>>>>emails from beta-testers published without permission when it was commercially
>>>>>>>convenient; beta-testers demoted as no-team members; beta-testers forced to
>>>>>>>write commercially useful stuff for the honor of spending X (when X tends to
>>>>>>>very many) hours hunting for bugs and checking the engine. Etc. It would seem a
>>>>>>>matter of common sense to assume, as Uri did, that collaborating in the
>>>>>>>improvement of a commercial product is a paid job, but in computer chess it is
>>>>>>>the other way round, even if the tester doesn't pay with money but in species.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>I have received over the years quite a few betas, but I always made clear that I
>>>>>>>would play with them for my own fun and in the way I was interested in, at my
>>>>>>>own whimsical pace, and that I was thoroughly incompetent as a tester (I am). A
>>>>>>>few times I declined, shame on me, the honor of beta-testing. Certainly the idea
>>>>>>>of getting paid for what in my case was a no-job didn't cross my mind, but the
>>>>>>>hierarchical relationship programmer-tester didn't either. Still, this kind of
>>>>>>>relationship seems to be quite common.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Why would that be this way, why a person feels promoted and agrees to pay for
>>>>>>>the promotion. Strange, isn't it?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Enrique
>>>>>>
>>>>>>I think it would be an "honor" to be a tester for these great programs!  :))
>>>>>
>>>>>You blew it. Instead of using quotation marks you should have wrote Honor. Nah,
>>>>>you'll never make it to the top... :)
>>>>
>>>>I think that Eddie used the quotation marks to express the opinion that it is
>>>>not an honor.
>>>>
>>>>Uri
>>>
>>>No Uri, it was written with quotation marks, to signify that it would be an
>>>"honor" ......  :))
>>
>>By the same idea you can say that it is an honor to write a chess program so the
>>programmers do not need to sell their program for money.
>>
>>I cannot disagree more.
>>
>>Uri
>
>Uri,
>
>Where you coming from?  I said it would be an "honor" to be a tester, do you
>read this text ok?   Or are you looking for an argument?   I don't need to hear
>crap of getting paid to be a tester.   It's an "honor!"  Do I make myself clear
>here?   I sure hope so ......

I do not understand what do you want to say by saying that it is an "honor!".

The discussion was about the reason that people agree to be a beta testers when
they are not paid for it.

You said that it would be an "Honor" to be a tester and it cannot explain the
fact that there are a lot of beta teters because usually people expect being
paid for jobs that people respect.

A good example is that when I told my friend about the elections for being a
moderator he asked me how much money do pepople earn from it.

I may accept being a moderator in the future but only because of the fact that I
know that we need moderators and not because of "Honor".

I know that when I was a beta testers for Junior and I told people about it
there were people who told me that I should ask for money for exposing bugs.

Uri



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