User Interface Group
Betas
What it means to be in beta
The MIT Libraries "betas" page is modeled after Google Labs to some extent. It's a place to experiment with new technologies that we're learning about. It's also a way to get feedback on new services before considering whether to make them permanent.
Some points about a service that is in beta:
- We don't yet know how useful it will be to our users and this is a way to begin to find out.
- It's a way to encourage user feedback before we roll out a new service.
- It's a place to get experience with technologies or features that we are still learning about without putting those into our "mission-critical" services.
- It's a place to encourage staff creativity and experimentation.
- It's a place where we can ask the MIT community to contribute tools or hacks. (in the MIT tradition of "hacks")
- It can help to manage user expectations... these things aren't perfect and may not always work. We don't support them in the same way as our mission-critical services.
- It gives us an opportunity to market things in a special way. People are keeping up with what we put on that page and checking it to see what's new.
- Every service on the Betas page will not necessarily "graduate" to permanent status. (see criteria below for moving out of beta)
- Even if we decide not to "graduate" a beta service, it can still be useful to us as something to learn from. Aspects of a particular beta service may become real parts of a more supportable service later on, perhaps backed by a different technology that is shown to be more stable.
Criteria & process for moving out of beta
The User Interface Group will make decisions about what goes on the Betas page and which services will "graduate" from Beta, in consultation with appropriate staff of the MIT Libraries in regard to user needs and our ability to support the technology. Betas will be evaluated after 1 year, based on the date added to the Betas page.
Criteria for graduating to a permanent service
- The beta has received positive user feedback (from more than a handful of users).
- It has been demonstrated that our community is using it. (We have statistics).
- We have worked out the support issues, such as:
- a commitment from a local unit or from STS to provide permanent support.
- how to support it over time with tested technologies that our staff is trained to support.
- documentation, training, and workflow are planned or in place so that support can be provided by more than one individual.
- if it's provided and supported outside of MIT, (whether free or paid), that it's from a trusted and reliable source.
Criteria for ending a beta
- We don't have a way to support it under the tested technology.
NOTE: The service can become a new beta with a different technology if the idea/concept just needs revision or further development. - It has been superseded by another tool or service. (Example: the Greasemonkey extension was replaced by LibX, which did the same functions and more).
- User need for the service remains unproven.