Where did the term "Beta" come from?

[little_e]

Strange story: I've been writing/critiquing stories off and on for over a decade, but I never heard this term "beta" until a few months ago.

So, was I just oblivious? Or is it a recent coinage? Where did the term come from? And does "alpha" mean anything?

[Unimportant]

Your alpha reader is your long-suffering spouse. They get to see all your crap. Your beta reader gets to see it after you've fixed all the bits your spouse hemorrhaged red ink on.

I think it's from software terminology: the alpha testers are the in-house developers/staff, and the beta testers are the people outside the company who get the not-yet-on-the-market software for free in exchange for letting the developers know every time they run into a bug.

[Medievalist]

Yep; it's from the software development life cycle.

[amschilling]

Yup, it's a software thing. Unimportant has it right as far as what happens.

I was actually a beta tester for a lot of years. Buggy nightmare sometimes, but lots of free software! It's funny to see the term used for writing now.

[JKRowley]

You are not the only one. I have been pretty active in writing circles for many years, but only recently heard of beta readers. It does remind me of beta testers for software programs.

[JSSchley]

It was only in the last couple of years that I came across the term for writing, but having also beta-tested software many times, I thought it was an absolutely brilliant term, and it's exactly how I think of my job when I beta read or when I ask someone to.

"This is my thing that is basically ready for the public to spend money on. Will you help me find the parts that still aren't working despite my best efforts?"

[Medievalist]

There's a huge overlap between geeks/software developers and fanfic writers, and the fanfic writers not only seized upon the terminology, they crafted sophisticated beta-reading systems.

[little_e]

Well, I feel a little less stupid, at least.

[katebranden]

There are sophisticated beta-reading systems?

[jaksen]

Doesn't 'alpha' in its simplest form mean, the first, or what comes first, or the top, the highest, the initial ...

And beta means second. So alpha refers to the first testers, the first readers, the first wolf, the first male, the first female. (And with animals it implies the dominant wolf, man, woman, etc.)

And beta means the second.

So alpha readers are those who read first, meaning the writer (and okay the spouse or partner or whoever is entrusted to be the first reader) and beta is the next or second reader or group of readers.

I shall now refer to my husband as Alpha.

[Layla Nahar]

So, it just makes me wonder - is the person who buys & reads the book - the gamma reader? (Or probably the Omega reader...)

Originally Posted by jaksen

I shall now refer to my husband as Alpha.

(it might go to his head...)

[Torgo]

Originally Posted by Layla Nahar

So, it just makes me wonder - is the person who buys & reads the book - the gamma reader? (Or probably the Omega reader...)

You're trying to stave off the omega reader as long as possible (and then he drops his glasses.)

[quicklime]

so it wasn't from the fish, and fighting with your critiquer?

[TheWordsmith]

Actually, the use of Alpha, Beta, Gamma, etc. as designations for "pecking order" if you will, pre-dates computers/modern technology by a long way. But, I guess you could say it was a logical and practical transition from Greeks to geeks. (Yeh. I know. I shouldn't have said that.)

Originally Posted by jaksen

Doesn't 'alpha' in its simplest form mean, the first, or what comes first, or the top, the highest, the initial ...

And beta means second. So alpha refers to the first testers, the first readers, the first wolf, the first male, the first female. (And with animals it implies the dominant wolf, man, woman, etc.)

And beta means the second.

So alpha readers are those who read first, meaning the writer (and okay the spouse or partner or whoever is entrusted to be the first reader) and beta is the next or second reader or group of readers.

This is actually about as close to the origin as you can get without going completely, analytically college professor.
Alpha: "A", the first. Alpha readers would be the first readers, those who read as you write and offer either editorial or subject matter comments/criticisms.
Beta: The "Second wave" as it were. These are the first to read your "finished product". They read for the overall effect and impression of the work and not strictly for editorial comment (although that tends to come with the territory, too, at times).
So I guess that would mean that Agents/Editors would be the Gamma readers?

I shall now refer to my husband as Alpha.

Hmm. Your husband is the Alpha male?

[jaksen]

Originally Posted by TheWordsmith

Hmm. Your husband is the Alpha male?

I let him think that.

[TheWordsmith]

Originally Posted by jaksen

I let him think that.

[AuthorJ]

Ever heard of the phrase "God is Alpha and Omega" meaning beginning and the end? In the original context Alpha, Omega, Gamma Omega etc are letters of the Greek alphabet. I guess Beta is the second letter of the Greek alphabet. The usage of such letters as symbols is not uncommon in many scientific fields. physicists talk of Alpha rays, Gamma rays, Beta rays etc. Seems that such usage has found its way into social, literary circles albeit with varying meaning etc.

[Kalea]

My husband is definitely my alpha reader, and we just had a conversation last night about how he embodies the term "long suffering."

He fell asleep last night to me yammering about time travel theory.

[Solanova]

Actually, Alpha refers to the writer, or author of the story. Beta refers to the first person to read it after the writer (before it goes public). So on so forth.

Like Alpha testing for video games is done in-house while its being made to make sure things go right, and Beta Testing is usually done after there is some substantial material to be tested, and is sent to select people, or people that sign up for it (such as an open beta)

So really your SPOUSE is your beta reader, the person that sees your story before it goes public

[edit] I have my BA in Interactive Media (A.K.A Video Game Design hahaha)

[Unimportant]

Originally Posted by Solanova

Actually, Alpha refers to the writer, or author of the story. Beta refers to the first person to read it after the writer. So on so forth.

Like Alpha testing for video games is done in-house while its being made to make sure things go right, and Beta Testing is usually done after there is some substantial material to be tested, and is sent to select people, or people that sign up for it (such as an open beta)

So really your SPOUSE is your beta reader, the person that sees your story before it goes public

Well, my spouse is in-house , so we alpha for each other.

But yeah, JAR is right. As with software, the beta is also the potential customer, so the beta should be seeing only your very best effort. And, IMO, for the vast majority of authors who are still at the stage of seeking an agent or contract, it's important to seek feedback from readers other than one's spouse before sending the story out into the world.

[Manuel Royal]

It's an unnecessary new term for something people have been doing for centuries.

[Solanova]

Originally Posted by Manuel Royal

It's an unnecessary new term for something people have been doing for centuries.

Some of us prefer the term "Updated".

[Al Stevens]

In the phonetic alphabet, they are your Bravo readers, which might be a double entendre.

[DancingMaenid]

Maybe it's just me, but I've never used the term alpha reader, even though I've served in that function for people before and have had others do the same for me. I've always used "beta" to cover any sort of one-on-one feedback/critiquing.

So I see the terms as being a little flexible depending on how people use them.

[James D. Macdonald]

The way it worked was

Software testing --> science fiction fanwriting --> general fanwriting -->general writing.

No one (other than the ultra-pedantic) use the term "alpha reader," and even then it's usually used humorously.

"Beta" is indeed the second letter of the Greek alphabet; it's where we get the word "alphabet": alpha beta.

Science fiction fandom is a hotbed of critical innovation and useful terminology. e.g. the Mary Sue story.