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I've been coming across this term too much recently. But I'm not sure what it is. I know about Alpha testing and Beta testing. I know the version of the application made available to users for and during beta testing is called a Beta release. But what exactly is Pre-beta? If they are releasing it to public for testing, it's already Beta, right?

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If someone uses a term you are unfamiliar with, the best policy is to ask them what they mean. And if multiple parties use the term, there is no guarantee that they all mean the same thing. If you are concerned about sounding naive, you can say, "I've never heard that term before. It sounds like it means X -- is that what it means to you too?" – user246 Jul 5 '12 at 20:02

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Pre-beta sounds like a non-standard term that people are inventing.

The common term for pre-beta is an alpha release, hence beta being the greek alphabet letter that comes after alpha.

Microsoft use the term "Technology Preview" that essentially means not of beta quality and features may change but hey, have a look and tell us what you think.

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Ok. But Alpha testing is supposed to be done by developers, right? Why are they releasing them to users? Is there some changes coming to testing concepts? – Bibhas Jul 6 '12 at 7:21
No. There is no such term as "alpha" testing. Beta testing refers to testing that is done on a beta release, if you are using an alpha, you are normally internal to the team and these are not likely to be available outside the company that develops the software. An example would be a version of software that a CEO would demo on stage, but is not made available would be an "alpha" release. – Bruce McLeod♦ Jul 7 '12 at 6:44
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BETA releases generally refer to full functionality and minor-no bugs expected. Pre-BETA releases are generally considered not as stable as their Beta counterparts. Some features may not be implemented and it would not be surprising to the developers to experience a Blocker issue and/or major bugs.

BETA = minor tweaking needed Pre-BETA = major development still needed

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