Does Microsoft typically give beta testers final versions of big ticket items?

[NFS4]

I've beta tested IE 5, 5.5, 5.5 SP1, 6.0, 6.0 SP1, etc and DX8, DX9 for Microsoft. And each time they sent me final CD versions of the product once the beta period was over (along with a t-shirt). But on the other hand, I also beta tested Combat Flight Simulator a while back and didn't get jack squat at the end of the test.

But I recently got accepted for Office 11 beta and I was wondering if they are so kind and generous with these "big ticket" items

 

[UNCjigga]

Hey while you're beta testing Office 11, can you tell us the difference in file size between the legacy file formats and XML formats? For example, how big is a Word document saved in .DOC vs .XML??? Or PowerPoint .PPT vs .XML, etc?

 

[BillGates]

I didn't get anything for being an XP beta tester and you even had to pay $10 to join that plan, what a ripoff. Of course there have been the $40 offers all over the place but my beta testing was enough to tell me that I didn't want to use XP....

 

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: BillGates
I didn't get anything for being an XP beta tester and you even had to pay $10 to join that plan, what a ripoff. Of course there have been the $40 offers all over the place but my beta testing was enough to tell me that I didn't want to use XP....

I didn't have to pay anything to join up...just sent them an email

On a side note, WinXP rocks hardcore.

 

[BillGates]

Don't forget that I own the damn company and still they take my money for my own products, what a load of crap.

 

[BCYL]

I was a beta tester for some MS football game a couple of years ago, and I never got jack after the beta was completed...

 

Originally posted by: BillGates
Don't forget that I own the damn company and still they take my money for my own products, what a load of crap.

LOL

 

[silverpig]

Originally posted by: BillGates
Don't forget that I own the damn company and still they take my money for my own products, what a load of crap.

Wouldn't it be funny if this guy REALLY WAS Bill Gates all along?

 

[bizmark]

Originally posted by: uncJIGGA
Hey while you're beta testing Office 11, can you tell us the difference in file size between the legacy file formats and XML formats? For example, how big is a Word document saved in .DOC vs .XML??? Or PowerPoint .PPT vs .XML, etc?

hmmm that'd be interesting to see. .DOC is such a bloated format... bleah I hate Word! Somebody will send me a Word document as an attachment at 21k, and I'll open it up in WordPerfect, save it as a .WPD (losing nothing in the translation), and it'll be 14k..... and the bigger the file, the more bloated it is. Bleah Word!

 

[CantedValve]

XP testers did in fact get retail versions of the software. Not all, but certain select testers, because the versions they got didn't require activation. If they gave everyone that tested XP that... well, they wouldnt sell any because those no-activation versions would be all over the place. They gave them to testers they could control, and that's all I have to say about that.

... or so that I have heard.

 

[BruceLee]

My uncle was a beta tester for Xp as well as many other products. He always received the full prduct afterwards, but that was because he was an employee for BillGates.;p

 

[DeschutesCore]

I've always gone the RoadShow route. Each time has netted me some good stuff. One copy of Office XP OEM from the OXP RoadShow and 3 copies Windows XP Pro OEM from the MS/Intel Roadshow.

DC

 

[MrBond]

My Boss's wife was a beta tester for Windows NT 3.xx and NT 4.0, she got free server versions of both.

I doubt they do that anymore though, but it is possible.

 

[Yzzim]

I tested one of the last betas for Age of Kings and Asheron's Call and didn't get jack in the end.

Edit: I think I did get a free subscription to Asheron's Call for a year once the game came out. Still had to buy the game though.

 

[tontod]

I beta tested win2k and got a final copy of it. However, I also beta tested XP, but never got a final version. I think it might depend on how much feedback you provide, not sure. I provided feedback a few times for 2k, but not much for XP, not sure if that made a difference.

 

[snooker]

I have been a beta tester for MS for years and they always send me a final copy of whatever it was I was helping test, or offer a download to burn my own cd.

 

[XZeroII]

You will not get free games for betatesting because most games are not actually made by Microsoft. Microsoft just publishes them. As for WinXP, you were not an actual beta tester when you paid $10. You were paying $10 just for a preview, thus you did not qualify for the free copy. IE and DirectX are both free anyway, so it doesn't make sense that they would give you a free version. It sometimes depends on whether you actually submit bugs as well. If you just sit on it, they will just assume you are a loser and don't deserve a free copy