Windows Live Betas
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Windows Live Betas showing the list of public beta services at that time |
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| Developer(s) | Microsoft |
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| Type | Product lab |
Windows Live Betas (previously Windows Live Ideas) was a website launched in November 2005 to promote the first Windows Live services, all of which remained in beta until some began to release final versions in the summer of 2006. The site includes links to try out the services, sign up for the betas, learn more about each service, and read team blogs. The site also included links to other "Live" offerings, initially featuring Xbox Live, Office Live, and Live Jobs.
This service has been discontinued since September 17, 2008 with the public beta release of the new Windows Live Essentials suite of services as part of the "Wave 3" launch.
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[edit] Beta Services
There are three ways Microsoft can distribute its Windows Live beta products:
- Managed Beta Program - distributed via Microsoft Connect. It feature high levels of interaction with the product teams and may provide private newsgroup access. Usually the number of beta testers is highly restricted.
- Closed Beta Program - distributed via the previous Windows Live Ideas. It require beta testers to sign-in with their authorised Windows Live ID account to the website before accessing or downloading the beta products. This allows more users to participate than the Managed Beta Program. Products with Managed Beta Program typically get expanded to become Closed Beta Program, alternatively products can go straight into a Closed Beta Program (such as the Windows Live TV beta).
- Open Beta Program - distributed via Windows Live Betas. There are basically none or very few restrictions placed on who can participate in testing the beta product. An example of a Windows Live beta service in this stage would be Windows Live Writer.
However as of April 12, 2007, Windows Live Ideas has become Windows Live Betas, causing the Closed Beta Program to be unavailable due to the inability to sign-in to the new website. Since September 17, 2008, Windows Live Betas has been discontinued and redirected to Windows Live Downloads with the release of the first betas of the Windows Live Essentials suite.
In addition, the following services are still currently under public beta testing, however are not displayed on the website anymore due to the migration to Windows Live Downloads:
[edit] Released Services
- Live.com
- Live Search Maps
- Live Search Products
- Windows Live Admin Center
- Windows Live Alerts
- Windows Live Expo
- Windows Live Family Safety
- Windows Live Favorites
- Windows Live Gallery
- Windows Live Hotmail
- Windows Live Messenger
- Windows Live Mail
- Windows Live OneCare
- Windows Live OneCare Safety Scanner
- Windows Live Photo Gallery
- Windows Live SkyDrive
- Windows Live Toolbar
- Windows Live Writer
- Soapbox on MSN Video
- Windows Live for Mobile
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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