Gmail, Google Calendar, Docs And Talk Leave Beta
Google today will finally remove the long-standing beta tag from some of its most popular web applications, most notably its wildly popular email application, Gmail.
In addition to the beta-less Gmail, Google Calendar, Docs and Talk (i.e., the rest of the Google Apps suite) will also shed the beta moniker. Gmail has notoriously worn the beta badge since its initial invite-only launch back in April of 2004. Strangely, as the New York Times points out, Google’s reasoning for keeping Gmail and other apps in beta for so long isn’t all that fleshed out:
“Obviously we haven’t had a consistent set of policies or definitions around beta,” said Matt Glotzbach, a director of product management at Google. Mr. Glotzbach said that different teams at Google had different criteria for what beta meant, and that Google felt a need to standardise those. “It was time to address the issue and bring the products out of beta,” he said.
The Times also points out that “[p]ractically speaking, the change will mean precious little to Gmail’s millions of users” who’ve been happily using Gmail in beta for years.
We’re still seeing the beta label on every Gmail account we’ve got as well as our Docs accounts, but Calendar is beta-free. Google’s rollouts are always just that—rolling—so you can probably still expect to see the rest of those beta tags drop sometime yet today or this week if they haven’t already. The Official Gmail Blog even highlights a new tongue-in-cheek Gmail Labs feature called Back to Beta that, when enabled, “[s]oothes the soul by putting the familiar beta sticker back on the Gmail logo”.
Does the beta-less Gmail, Calendar, Docs, or Talk mean anything special to you? Will it inspire you to use Google apps more confidently? Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments.
Gmail leaves beta, launches “Back to Beta” Labs feature [Official Gmail Blog]
Gmail and Other Google Apps Finally Shed ‘Beta’ Label [NYT]
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Comments (AU Comments | US Comments)
Google Voice is also now out of beta (which is funny because it still is actually beta) it did start as beta.
Also accordint to the google blog, it did this to make busniesses feel more comfortable using their infrastructure, since beta implies "unstable" to a lot of places.
Maybe now put "Gamma" or "Charlie" :D That would make me smile.
@jeremiah89: It is VERY silly. They take away useful labs features, like... Default "Reply to All" when replying, and put stupidity such as this there.
Good day for software, Google stuff leaving beta and VLC 1.0
motang
"Does the beta-less Gmail, Calendar, Docs, or Talk mean anything special to you? Will it inspire you to use Google apps more confidently?"
No.
Well, maybe Talk should be in Beta though.
baest
Hey Google, how about celebrating the big news by giving out some more Gmail stickers! Stupid me, I missed the deadline last time.
@brettbarnes: I'll partially agree with that, because Google is not the only one at fault.
Beta lost it's meaning, and that alone is something bad.
Beta used to mean a product not meant for final users, that needed testing which could be done either by professional testers or by making a limited released to people that agreed to test the product before full release.
Nowadays, beta just became a lame excuse for developers to avoid user complaining by stating that the product is not fully ready yet, thus avoiding bigger problems in case the software has a major crash, affecting lots of people in the process.
@DangerousLiberal:
I agree with labeling them beta in early stages... XP had problems after it was released, Vista too. But for me, both became very stable and reliable after the first service pack.
Typing this from a laptop with Vista... running for a year and a half, no crashes.
Bokusatsu_Tenshi
@pontelo: Do you mean, "Revision history?" That exists. However, If I use any combination other than FF and OS-X, many of the Google Docs editing features are not available, or useful.
HappyPhil
@GreenKufi: Everyone gets the shaft every now and then in the tech world (besides arguably the Japanese who are years ahead of everyone else, for now) The Australians have been getting some early debuts recently for games...
I honestly think the entire idea is idiotic. Spore, had a fiasco of a release in Australia (retailers released games early "forcing" EA to move the release date, while N. Americans were made to keep the same much later date.) So what did I do? Torrented and played it while I waited for my copy to arrive in the mail a week later. Shaft us and we shaft you.
What! Gmail out of Beta! *head explode*
Now that Gmail is out of beta - I'll give it a try. Last time I attempted to get an account I needed an invite - is this still the case?.
I'm skeptical. There must be some rolling improvement, because I can still quite handily break a Docs spreadsheet so I'm required to reset (reload).
ejlightning
@nullcoast: Some Issues conflicting with other gmail features. Im pretty sure they got rid of it the day google voice came out.
[groups.google.com]
@MostlyHarmless: +1. I wonder of this frees up the folks in Redmond to permanently put beta on all their products, until about SP3 or greater. Or, in the case of Vista, they could have just called it Win7 alpha.
DangerousLiberal
About time.
In my opinion, leaving BETA is serious thing. 'Beta' label has been a sign that Gmail and Calendar are going to be better, better and better forewer, and that gives me a sence of confidence..., but now I have a sence that they just stop further improvements.
I do not like BETA-less version although I have it under the Labs, neither I like recent quitting of ''right side labels'' option under Labs (now I have big empty hole on the right side, below Chat that I have on the right as well.
@MostlyHarmless:
No, Yes WE can!
@MostlyHarmless: No he can't! Want to fight about it?? :)
paintbox
Minus the occasional outages, I'm happy with Gmail... until the next hickup, that is. Then I'll be mad again. Anyway, they can do what they like with the "beta" label.... they can leave it in, banish it forever if they want. (shrugs). I'm a Gmailer in any case.
All my talk is from my own selfish myopic point of view. I don't give a flying ***k about what the enterprise does with Gmail, or doesn't, so long as they don't wreck it.
If I were actually paying money for Gmail, then I'd say I'm mostly a satisfied customer. But as I am not, then I am a satisfied freeloader. Thanks Google!
paintbox
APOCALYPSE
Wewtaco
i wonder if they changed their privacy terms now that they're out of beta... yeah right /rolls eyes.
atomicrabbit
@waffles: Aaah, WP.com. The best blogging service online, that doesn't let you do what you want. You must do things the way they want you to do them. Seems like an Apple philosophy to me. An I'm an anti-Mac-ite for that very reason, yet use wp.com extensively.
I think our wish of having better integration with WP.com is more of a WP.com issue than it is a Google issue.
GreenKufi
@BoomDivX: I never understood why Canada keeps getting the shaft when it comes to the latest technology.
The loss of Beta, doesn't bother me. I've been really happy with the latest updates to the Google suite, both the standard and apps.
GreenKufi
@CaptPicard: According to Back to the Future II, this will happen in 2015.
mclifford82
@pontelo: Track changes is a feature, not a standard. I'm pretty sure Google wants to sell Premium subs to Docs some day, and track changes is a good bullet point to have on that marketing ...
mclifford82
@ericesque: Yes He Can.
@brettbarnes: On the contrary, i think they actually raised the bar for what "beta" and "production version" mean. It was one of the most polished beta versions I have seen.
On the other hand, I can think of at least one company that diminished the meaning of a stable release seeing as how awfully bug-riddled their software is till at least SP1 >:(
Someone PLEASE tell me that "Back to Beta" is a reference to Planet Unicorn and "Back to Better!"
good thing I read this, with Better GReader/GCal/etc. I dont even see the label anymore...I never would have known.
mldennison
I'm hoping this marks the beginning of the Google Wave beta era.
Wow. This must be the first sign of the apocalypse. What's next, the Cubs winning the World Series?
The beta label is gone from Voice too. This I don't understand - it's still invite only but it's out of beta? Seems to me that Google has just swung the "beta" pendulum way back to other way.
Monday: "Hey, we should leave everything beta"
Tuesday: "Hey, even our beta stuff should be out of beta"
gtheule
@Joe Filip: Me too... I was wondering where it went. Can anybody point me to a blog post or press release on why they canned it?
nullcoast
@Raiderboy23: Hence the "Back to Beta." I too hatted to see it go. It just felt wrong. Gmail seemed incomplete without it. So I activated the feature and all is right in my world.
gtheule
Just checked my email...
Label is gone.
(OMG)
@JadeEmperor:
no you don't.
ericesque
@jupiterthunder: Haha yeah really.
AtomFury
lets see...
GMail, Calendar & iGoogle- no beta tag
Docs- beta tag when I looked last
Runnin-Ute
Next up. GMail....RC1
jupiterthunder
At first I thought the whole "Back to Beta" Labs feature was a little silly. Then I actually logged in and saw the logo change. Doesn't change much I guess. But if I stop and think, I've been with Gmail since very close to the beginning. I can see how people might be very sad.
jeremiah89
Did the earth stop spinning while I wasn't aware?
Ashen
Google Docs should keep the beta marker; at least until they have a track changes function, it is not fully operational or useful!
Not that this really makes I difference I didnt even notice until you guys pointed it out lol.
@JadeEmperor: Fear not, if you have google labs, you can get the "Beta" Sticker back.
joandrade
Truly this is the end of an era.
Crashproof
I miss the SMS function, I assume its gone because of the Google Voice.. but there was never any big hoopla about it...
Joe Filip
Now gmail just need some twitter like user managed page background.
antoniomax
Is this true, or is Google just beta testing "Google April Fool's Joke 2010"?
*sniff* i already miss the "beta" tag.
Aw.. I'll kinda miss Beta. Not enough to use that "Back to Beta" lab, though. I think that's a little bit too ridiculous. It's funny though. Haha.
That has always been selfish of Google. They've single handedly diminished the meaning of "beta". They've cried wolf and misrepresented the true nature of beta testing and its ramifications. Jerks.
brettbarnes
@Raiderboy23: I actually have to agree. I set up my "GmailTips.com" back in 2004, and it amazes me that it has been in beta for so long.
And like you said, it has been rock solid since day one. Yes there have been outages, annoyances, and what-not, but I have never lost email or contacts unless I did it myself. Kuddos to Google!!
I...I never thought I'd live..to see this day..
Excuse me, I ..I think I have something in my eye.
Wait a second. I thought Google Beta was their registered trademark name. It's on everything.
Well, that was anticlimactic.
kettlewhistle
I just did a refresh on my Gmail session, and voila! no more beta logo! Wheeee!
"...longest beta ever..."
Are the different labs going to be still available when not in beta.
jnhagerm
Maybe we can get some Google Calendar embedded in WordPress.com blog action now.
GMail just removed the beta tag :D I just relogged and POUF, the tag was gone!
Doesn't really change anything in my life, but hey, at least it's not a bad news! ^_^
I just wish they could bring Voice to Canada :'(
Haha, I've been wondering about that forever, and noticing that it was by far the most stable "beta" I've ever used. It will be kind of sad to see it go...