So I found myself this morning, as I was ironing a shirt, thinking about flight simulation. (While it didn't disturb me at the time, the more I think about it, the more concerned I become considering the alternatives to that particular line of thought, most of which are not printable by any standards...). But as I drove that hot piece of iron over my favorite green shirt, I started to think about why, by all that's holy, would anyone want me to be a beta tester?

I am a "Click Here And Go And Get Something Cold To Drink While The Computer Does The Installation Work" type of simmer. Installation instructions that don't end with "Step 2, You're Done" cause me to break out into a healthy sweat. I can't write code (or as I refer to it, those squiggly lines and numbers things), I can't tell you anything about the hardware/software I'm using without referring to the manual (ewww) that came with the computer, and I certainly cannot offer insight into what may be causing that CTD (cool beta-tester lingo, like it?) (OK, "Crash To Desktop" for you non-betas out there) or, heaven forbid, the dreaded Blue Screen that causes all those Dell techies to swoon.

But, against all odds, I am a beta tester. Honest. I'm working with the developers (to be named later) of three different projects now, at least two in the past with which you are no doubt familiar, and will likely be involved with a few more. Stop laughing.

Getting back to the ironing, the next thought I had (after "What's that burning smell?") was, "Wouldn't it be fun to write something about being/becoming a beta tester?" A whole lot more fun than the ironing, I can tell you that. And, especially for me, how and why an unlikely candidate such as myself can find himself involved with so many projects. With this in mind, I sent out an email to my developer friends, hoping to pick their brains for what it is they look for when deciding on whom to "hire on" as a tester.

First, some of my own observations. Certainly, a love of (or at least a very strong platonic relationship with) flight simulation is a must. As we're in a flightsim website here, we'll leave all of you first person shoot-em-up types to go find your own beta in your forums. I have been a flightsim fan since '98, but didn't really get into it until the 2000 was released. Once '02 came out, and I became comfortable using the web, I began to follow forums, using them mostly as a guide for which add-on I should be buying next.

Next, a healthy dose of curiosity about the path that our passion is likely to take is a good thing. Unlike rugby, flight simming is something that may be enjoyed by anyone, any age, under any conditions. I happen to be in shape (round is a shape), and so can do pretty much anything I choose (I tore a muscle swinging a wiffle ball bat...). But, there are many of us for whom going beyond the confines of the couch is pretty much out of the question (I'm thinking of starting a club...). For us, flightsim is an escape, a hobby, a pastime, a window into someplace anywhere but right here. Keeping an eye on where we will be going, especially considering how far we've come, can be a wonderful thing. And being a contributing part of the journey? Priceless.

Enter my friend, John Hnidec. Certainly you remember FSFlightmax and the original Garmin series? Yep, that John. Well, I bought Flightmax, and no surprise here, had some difficulty getting it to behave. I spent a lot of time corresponding with John, and between my ineptitude and his endless patience and expertise, he was able to (despite my best efforts) get the thing working. By this time, we had struck up a friendship of sorts, and it occurred to me that I may very well be the ultimate end user. I said to John, while speaking of the Garmin, "If I can get it to work, ANYONE can!" Well, he took that to heart, and there I was. The first 'B' on my Sim-Varsity sweater.

Flip over a flightsim freak, and very often you'll find buried in there somewhere amongst the USB cables and user manuals (ewww) a latent air traffic controller freak. I remember the Commodore 64 ATC game, and then later TRACON. I even had this really cool hand held ATC game by Bandai (which I still have, although it finally crossed over). So when I happened upon Brad Davis' Air Traffic Controller program in its development stage, I knew where I was going. I must have been one of the first few people to purchase his program, and thereafter spent a lot of time working with him getting it to work the way I wanted. Again, I think we both realized that when there was an upgrade of the sim, and if I could manage to install it and get it to run, then chances were better than good that anyone else could too. The next beta assignment was on the books. Are you seeing a common thread yet?

This really is what the stuff they use today looks like!

The stuff that is out there these days is mind boggling. Following the forums as I do, I jump at every posting which seeks beta testers. This is how I came to be involved with Bryan York of FS2Crew fame (http://www.fs2crew.com/). For Bryan, I do something a little different. Yes, my ineptitude goes a long way in telling him (or any other developer) just how foolproof is the product. But for FS2Crew, you really have to read the manual (ewww). Now, I had purchased his program for the PMDG aircraft. What I wanted to do was to beta the default 737 version. He agreed, and to Bryan's credit, I managed to get it running first time. But, I had a big problem with the manuals. As an avid reader, I tend to spot typos and grammatical gaffs without effort, and so spent a lot of time proofing them. Something a little different, but it was a job that needed doing and I was glad to be doing it.

A few of the panels used to interact with flight crew.

John Hnidec. Remember John? He and Fermin Fernandez are working up this nifty program under their Company name, FSWidgets (http://www.fswidgets.com). I could tell you what it is but that would be indiscreet (it's a seriously cool TAWS unit). This is another program for which I volunteered, and have been working on it with a great bunch of testers and developers for a while now. You are going to LOVE it!

This is a sneak peek. Don't tell anyone you saw this, OK?

So, what is it that the developers look for when trying to find just the right mix of talent when choosing their beta team? Here, directly from the horse's mouth (no offense to you equine readers out there) is an idea of what it is they seek:

John Hnidec:

I would much rather have someone who is careful and particular when trying the software than someone who has 3000 hours logged and is a real pilot and works for Boeing. Sometimes you can find people who actually have the experience as well as the right demeanor. That's when you hang on to them and do anything you can to keep them happy. As for us (speaking on my own here), I think we value people who try their best the most. I don't really care about how proficient somebody is with FS, I do care that they will be careful when they do things, and if something doesn't look right they will let us know.

Fermin Fernandez:

As for what is desirable in a beta tester, as John says, there are no special requirements as far as qualifications are concerned, although it is nice to have some in the team that are knowledgeable in matters aviation. I would say the best quality is being thorough and hard-working. Thorough - Means checking and rechecking every feature, to go into every nook and cranny of the product and poke and prod it all over to see if anything breaks. Just flying around with it as a normal user would is not enough because that may no reveal some hidden bug. It may be the order the buttons are pressed, if something resizes correctly under different circumstances. The good beta tester doesn't necessarily go around wildly pushing every button in sight, but will try different combinations, or turning on some features with others off in different combinations, etc. and basically ask "what if?". That way even the most unlikely bugs can be caught and weeded out. Hardworking - Beta testing can be hard yakka (Aussie term for tough work), sure at first there's the excitement of trying a new product but that generally wears out after a couple of days. After that it can be a bit of a grind installing, testing and re-testing very feature and taking notes of any funnies and then reporting them back to the developers, then seeing a new beta and going through it all again.

Bryan York:

What I look for: 1. Real commitment and genuine interest in the product. 2. The ability to communicate clearly. 3. Lots of free time. 4. Not afraid to point out even the most trivial issue. I also look for diversity. It's best, for example, not to have beta testers who are all "experts" so to speak given that not everyone who uses the program will be experts. It's good to have testers that reflect the wide range of backgrounds that users come from.

Brad Davis:

Actually, I like to have a very wide range of skilled users who have a lot of aviation knowledge, and/or very little. And the same for computer expertise. I need some pretty sophisticated users, and some computer "dummys" if you want to call them that (Author's note: This is a position I fill admirably). Users with exceptional computer skill may work around a problem without revealing it to me. But then, the not-so-good user will stumble onto something, completely by accident, and will provide extremely valuable feedback.

Will having read this article guarantee you a spot on a beta team? Absolutely not. That was not my purpose in writing it. What I hope to have done is to provide you with some insight into what it is a developer seeks in a tester when first trying out his product, and what it is you should expect to be able to deliver to that developer in return. It is terribly cool to be the first one on the block with a new as yet unreleased program, and to have gotten it for free, no less (to say nothing of that spiffy Beta Signature Banner you get to sport at the end of your posts). But 'free' is a relative term. The developers expect a return on their investment in you, and it really does come down to a question of love for flight simulation when it's time to return their investment.

Three Green!

Chip Barber
rfbarber@optonline.net