檢視Software release life cycle的原始碼

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A '''software release''' is the distribution of [[computer software|software]] code, documentation, and support materials.  The '''software release life cycle''' is composed of discrete phases that describe the software's maturity as it advances from planning and development to release and support phases.

== Development ==
=== Pre-Alpha ===
Pre-alpha refers to all activities performed during the software project prior to [[software testing|testing]]. These activities can include [[requirements analysis]], [[software design]], [[software development]] and [[unit testing]].

In typical [[open source]] development, there are several types of pre-alpha versions. '''Milestone''' versions include specific sets of functions and are released as soon as the functionality is complete.

=== Alpha === <!-- Many pages link to this section. Please take care if renaming or moving it. -->
The [[alpha (letter)|alpha]] phase of the release life cycle is the first phase to begin [[Software testing]].  In this phase, developers generally test the software using [[white box testing|white box techniques]]. Additional validation is then performed using [[black box testing|black box]] or gray box techniques, by another [[Software testing|testing team]]. Moving to black box testing inside the organization is known as ''alpha release''.

Alpha software can be unstable and could cause crashes or data loss.

The alpha phase usually ends with a [[Freeze (software engineering)|feature freeze]], indicating that no more features will be added to the software.  At this time, the software is said to be [[feature complete]].

=== Beta === <!-- Many pages link to this section. Please take care if renaming or moving it. -->
"Beta" is the software development phase following alpha, named after the Greek letter [[Beta (letter)|beta]].  It generally begins when the software is [[feature complete]]. The focus of beta testing is reducing impacts to users, often incorporating [[usability testing]].  The process of delivering a beta version to the users is called '''beta release'''.

The users of a beta version are called ''beta testers''. They are usually customers or prospective customers of the organization that develops the software, willing to test the software for free or for a reduced price.

Beta version software is likely to be useful for internal demonstrations and previews to select customers. Some developers refer to this stage as a '''preview''', a '''prototype''', a '''technical preview''' ('''TP''') or as an '''early access'''.

==== Open and closed beta ====

Developers release either a '''closed beta''' or an '''open beta'''; closed beta versions are released to a select group of individuals for a user test, while open betas are to a larger community group, usually the general public. The testers report any bugs that they found and sometimes minor features they would like to see in the final version.

Examples of a major public beta test were [[Microsoft]]'s release of '''community technology preview'''s ('''CTP'''s) for [[Windows Vista]] in January 2005. In September 2000, a ''boxed version'' of Apple Computer's [[Mac OS X Public Beta]] operating system was released.

=== Release candidate ===
The term '''release candidate''' ('''RC''') refers to a version with potential to be a final product, ready to release unless fatal [[computer bug|bugs]] emerge. In this stage of product stabilization, all product features have been designed, coded and tested through one or more beta cycles with no known showstopper-class bug.

During the 1990s, [[Apple Inc.]] used the term "[[golden master]]" for its release candidates, and the final golden master was used as the general availability release. Other Greek letters, such as '''gamma''' and '''delta''', are sometimes used to indicate versions that are substantially complete, but still undergoing testing, with '''omega''' or '''zenith''' used to indicate final testing versions that are believed to be relatively bug-free, ready for production.

A release is called '''code complete''' when the development team agrees that no entirely new source code will be added to this release. There may still be source code changes to fix defects. There may still be changes to documentation and data files, and to the code for test cases or utilities. New code may be added in a future release.

=== Origin of alpha and beta terminology ===
{{Unreferenced section|date=August 2007}}
The term '''beta test''' comes from an [[IBM Product Test|IBM convention]], dating back to punched card tabulating and sorting machines.  Hardware first went through an '''alpha test''' for preliminary functionality and small scale manufacturing feasibility.  Then came a '''beta test''', to verify that the hardware correctly performed the intended functions and could be manufactured at scale.  Ultimately, a '''gamma test''' was performed to verify safety.

When IBM began testing software, it used the same terminology as it had for hardware. As other companies began developing their own software, the terminology stuck—and now is part of the common vocabulary.

== Release ==
=== RTM {{Anchors|RTM|Release to manufacturing|Release to marketing|RTM_or_RTW}} ===
The term "'''release to manufacturing'''" or "'''release to marketing'''" (both abbreviated RTM)—also known as "going gold"—is a term used to indicate that the software has reached a point that it is ready to or has been delivered or provided to the customer.  It is typically used in certain retail mass-production software contexts - as opposed to a specialized software production or project in a commercial or government production and distribution - where the software is sold as part a bundle in a related computer hardware sale and typically where the software and related hardware is ultimately to be available and sold on mass/public basis at retail stores to indicate that the software has met a defined quality level and is ready for mass retail distribution. RTM could also mean in other contexts that the software has been delivered or released to a client or customer for installation or distribution to the related hardware end user computers or machines.  The term does ''not'' define the delivery mechanism or volume; it only states that the quality is sufficient for mass distribution. The deliverable from the engineering organization is frequently in the form of a '''gold''' master CD used for duplication or to produce the image for the web.

RTM happens prior to general availability ([[#GA|GA]]) when the product is released to the public.

=== General availability {{Anchors|GA|General availability}} ===
'''General availability '''or''' General Acceptance''' ('''GA''') is the point where all necessary commercialization activities have been completed and the software has been made available to the general market either via the web or physical media.

Commercialization activities could include but are not limited to the availability of media world wide via dispersed distribution centers, marketing collateral is completed and available in as many languages as deemed necessary for the target market, the finishing of security and compliance tests, etc.  The time between RTM and GA can be from a week to months in some cases before a generally available release can be declared because of the time needed to complete all commercialization activities required by GA.

Another term with a meaning almost identical to GA is '''FCS''', for '''First Customer Shipment'''. Some companies (such as Sun Microsystems and Cisco) use FCS to describe a software version that has been shipped for revenue.

It is also at this stage that the software is considered to have "gone live". The '''production''', '''live''' version is the final version of a particular product. A live release is considered to be very stable and relatively bug-free with a quality suitable for wide distribution and use by end users. In commercial software releases, this version may also be [[Code signing|signed]] (used to allow end-users to verify that code has not been modified since the release).  The expression that a software product "has gone live" means that the code has been completed and is ready for distribution.  Other terms for the live version include: live master, live release, or live build.

In some areas of software development it is at this stage that the release is referred to as a '''gold''' release; this seems to be confined mainly to game software.

== Support ==
=== Service release ===
{{Expand section|date=August 2009}}
During its supported lifetime, software is sometimes subjected to service releases, or [[service pack]]s. As a well used example, Microsoft's [[Windows XP]] has currently had 3 major [[Windows XP#Service packs|Service Packs]].

Such service releases contain a collection of updates, fixes and/or enhancements, delivered in the form of a single installable package. They may also contain entirely new features.

Certain software is released with the expectation of regular support. Classes of software that generally involve protracted support as the norm include [[Antivirus software|Anti-virus suites]] and [[Massively multiplayer online game|Massively Multiplayer Online Games]].

=== End of life {{Anchors|EOL|End of life}} ===
{{See also|End-of-life (product)}}
When software is no longer sold or supported, the product is said to have reached end-of-life.

== Impact of the World-Wide Web ==

As the Internet has allowed for rapid and inexpensive distribution of software, companies have begun to take a more loose approach to use of the word "beta".<ref>[http://www.tidbits.com/tb-issues/TidBITS-328.html#lnk5 "Waiting with Beta'd Breath"] ''[[TidBITS]]'' #328 (May 13, 1996)</ref> [[Netscape Communications]] was infamous for releasing alpha level versions of its [[Netscape (web browser)|Netscape web browser]] to the public and calling them "beta" releases.{{Citation needed|date=April 2010}} In February 2005, [[ZDNet]] published an article about the recent phenomenon of a beta version often staying for years and being used as if it were in production-level. It noted that [[Gmail]] and [[Google News]], for example, had been in beta for a long period of time and were not expected to drop the beta status despite the fact that they were widely used; however, Google News did leave beta in January 2006, followed by [[Google Apps]], including [[Gmail]], in July 2009.<ref>[http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/google-apps-is-out-of-beta-yes-really.html "Google Apps is out of beta (yes, really)"] "The Official Google Blog" (July 7, 2009)</ref> This technique may also allow a developer to delay offering full support and/or responsibility for remaining issues. In the context of [[Web 2.0]], people even talk of [[perpetual beta]]s to signify that some software is meant to stay in beta state. Also, "beta" is sometimes used to indicate something more like a [[Software release life cycle#Release candidate|release candidate]], or as a form of time limited demo, or marketing technique.<ref>[http://www.gamesradar.com/f/the-inconvenient-truths-behind-betas/a-2010051712402686048 The inconvenient truths behind betas]</ref>

Some users disparagingly refer to release candidates and even final "point oh" releases as "gamma test" software, suggesting that the developer has chosen to use its customers to test software that is not truly ready for general release. Beta testers, if privately selected, will often be credited for using the release candidate as though it were a finished product.

=== Web release ===
A '''web release''' is a means of software delivery that utilizes the Internet for distribution.  No physical media are produced in this type of release mechanism by the manufacturer. This is sometimes also referred to as ''Release To Web'' (RTW).
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== See also ==
*[[Paper launch]]
*[[Release engineering]]
*[[Release management]]
*[[Rolling release]]
*[[Software maintenance]]
*[[Software testing]]
*[[Software versioning]]
*[[Software deployment]]
*[[Vaporware]]

== References ==
<!--See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags-->
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
*[http://developer.apple.com/technotes/tn/tn1132.html Apple, Inc. Version Territory]
*[http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Software-Proj-Mgmt-HOWTO/users.html#ALPHABETA Free Software Project Management HOWTO].
*[https://pide.dev.java.net/glossary-std.html Java Standard Terms].
*[http://www.se-cure.ch/Publications.html Software Release Decisions]
*[http://www.methodsandtools.com/archive/archive.php?id=55 A Methodology to Support Software Release Decisions]
*[http://www.editorial.co.in/software/software-testing-life-cycle.php Software Testing Life Cycle].
*[http://www.computeruser.com/resources/dictionary/definition.html?lookup=792 computeruser.com definition]
*[http://www.smartcomputing.com/editorial/dictionary/detail.asp?guid=&searchtype=&DicID=8430&RefType=Dictionary smartcomputing.com definition]
*[http://www.techweb.com/encyclopedia/defineterm.jhtml?term=betaware techweb.com definition]
*[http://semver.org/ Semantic versioning]

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[[Category:Software Engineering]]