The Logos 9 Beta Program

? Parent Logos Bible Software Wiki

 

! The Logos 9 Beta Program

 

{{{@float-right

Wiki: [[TOC >> table of contents]], [[VTOC >> Visual Table of Contents]], [[Home >> Logos Bible Software Wiki]]

Forum: [[Desktop Beta >> http://community.logos.com/forums/106.aspx]]

  [[Logos 9 Desktop App >> http://community.logos.com/forums/155.aspx]]

  [[Home >> http://community.logos.com/forums/]]

  [[General >> http://community.logos.com/forums/77.aspx]]

 

*See Also*

[[Beta Warnings and Disclaimers >> http://community.logos.com/forums/t/52967.aspx]]

[[Update Channels]]

[[Logos Release History]]

[[Logos 9 Beta Release Notes]]

[[Logos 9 Release Notes]]

[[Windows Troubleshooting]]

[[macOS Troubleshooting]]

[[Logos Speaks]]

}}}

/Page Contents/

* [[Development Cycle >> # Development Cycle]]

* [[Understanding different versions >> # Understanding different versions]]

* [[How do I join the beta program? >> # How do I join the beta program?]]

* [[Recommended Beta tester behavior >> # Recommended Beta tester behavior]]

* [[Typical Beta tester behavior >> # Typical Beta tester behavior]]

* [[Reporting Problems >> # Reporting Problems]]

* [[Understanding update channels >> # Understanding update channels]]

* [[Manually setting the update channel >> # Manually setting the update channel]]

* [[Finding your update channel >> # Finding your update channel ]]

* [[A caveat >> # A caveat]]

* [[Understanding build numbers >> # Understanding build numbers]]

* [[Frequently Asked Questions >> # Frequently Asked Questions]]

 

!! Development Cycle

Typically every six to seven weeks, the Faithlife Corporation releases new 64 bit versions of Logos 9 and Verbum 9 with new/improved feature(s)/dataset(s)/interactive(s) and bug fixes.  Before these new versions are released officially, Faithlife provides public *Beta* test releases for both Windows and mac OS (OS X).  Typically Faithlife publishes several Beta releases over a period of one to two months.  Each new release will have more features (some are exclusive to [[Faithlife Connect >> htt (…)

 

Towards the end of a development cycle, Faithlife Corporation will release builds that should be stable enough for daily use - a release candidate (RC).  If no significant bugs are found in release candidate after a short period (a few days), Faithlife will make that release available to everyone (often referred to as 'Gold').  If bugs are found, they'll be fixed in a new release candidate (RC2), and the process continues until no more significant bugs are found.  Service releases (SR) fix signi (…)

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| *[[9.1 >> Logos 9.1]]* | *[[Beta 1 >> Logos 9.1 Beta 1]]* |

| 2020 | ? |

| *Build #* | 9.1.0.000? |

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!! Understanding different versions

* *Alpha version*: A very early test version - missing some important features, and will probably have bugs. For Logos 9, Alpha versions were /Faithlife internal builds/.

* *Beta version*: A later test version - has more features, but will still have some bugs - can include non-backward compatible changes (so syncing stuff between Beta and Stable has potential to cause issues in Stable release).

* *Release Candidate*: A version that Logos developers hope is stable enough for daily use.  Note the word 'hope'!

* *Gold Release*: The final version that really does have all features _stable_ enough for daily use - exactly the same as final Release Candidate.

* *Service Release*: After a Gold release, some bugs need fixing for _stable_ daily use by variety of people.

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!! How do I join the beta program?

The beta program is available to all Logos and Verbum users.  The [[Logos Desktop Beta forum >> http://community.logos.com/forums/106.aspx]] discusses beta issues, which can include interaction with Faithlife developers.  Please read and heed [[*IMPORTANT* Beta Testing Information/Warnings >> https://community.logos.com/forums/t/52967.aspx]]

 

* On PC and mac OS, to join current and future beta releases, use command *set update channel to beta*

{{# * On PC and mac OS, you can download current beta release using link in [[update channel RSS feed >> # Understanding update channels]] then install }}

!!! Recommended Beta tester behavior

Install the Beta in another User Account on your computer and use the *Set Update Channel to Beta* command. You will receive all releases on the Beta channel (including Release Candidate versions) whilst your other installation remains on the Stable channel.

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!!! Typical Beta tester behavior

Use the *Set Update Channel to Beta* command in your current installation. It is advisable to also set Automatic Downloads to NO (in *Program Settings*) so that you will be notified of the download and can choose whether to accept it. This allows you to check the Beta forum for details as you might not want to install a particularly buggy/unstable version!

Once a release goes 'Gold' you can *a)* do nothing and move directly into the next beta cycle when Beta 1 is released OR *b)* revoke the previous command with *Set Update Channel to Default* and receive Service Release(s) on the stable channel.

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!! Reporting Problems

You should have [[logging permanently enabled >> Diagnostic Logging]] because you will be expected to [[upload logs >> Uploading Logs]] for diagnostic purposes to the [[Logos Desktop Beta forum >> http://community.logos.com/forums/106.aspx]] , especially after a crash. For more details see [[*Logos* Windows Problem >> https://www.logos.com/support/windows/report-problem]], [[Windows Troubleshooting]], [[*Logos* Mac Problem >> https://www.logos.com/support/mac/report-problem]] or [[OS X Troublesh (…)

*Note* Logos or other users may be able to recommend a workaround but be prepared to wait for the next beta (may be a week or two)!

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!! Understanding update channels

Logos has two update channels, beta and _stable_. These 'channels' (actually RSS feeds) tell your Logos software when a new version is available. The _*stable*_ channel contains details for Gold release and Service Releases only. The *beta* channel contains details for beta and release candidates (RC), may include service release (if no public Beta available). These tables illustrate recent versions in beta and _stable_ channels:

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| *Beta channel* |

| _*Stable channel*_ |

 

!!! Manually setting the update channel

* By default, Beta versions *read* beta channel for program updates.

* By default, all other versions *read* _stable_ channel for updates. /This means Release Candidates *read* stable channel for future updates even though they are *released* on the beta channel./.

* You can receive Beta and RC updates with version newer than currently installed by using command *set update channel to beta*

* If you wish to return to default channel then use command *set update channel to default*

* If you wish to receive newer _stable_ releases, then use command *set update channel to stable* /(can use in a Beta version to skip future Beta and RC updates)/

* If using Spanish as default language, use: [[*establecer canal de actualización a ...* >> http://community.logos.com/forums/p/31132/231072.aspx#231072]]

 

!!! Finding your update channel

* On a PC, if you click help icon in top right of Logos, and choose *About Logos Bible Software*, you can find out which update channel you are using. On OS X, click *Logos* on menu bar (top left of screen), then click *About Logos Bible Software* to show version and update channel. If you have manually specified either the stable or beta channels, this will be stated next to version number. If you are using default channel for this particular version, then nothing will be stated.

 

!!! A caveat

* Regardless of which update channel you are using Logos will only install versions of the software that have a *higher* version number than the one you are currently running. So if you have a beta version (say 9.1 Beta 1) and you are using the default /stable/ channel, you will not receive a service release (say 9.0 SR-1) for the current stable version because it has a *lower* version number: e.g. 9.0 (9.0.0.####) is less than 9.1 (9.1.0.####).

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!! Understanding build numbers

Version numbers in Logos look like this 9.0.0.0022. The *9* just means Logos or Verbum version 9. The *9.0* means this is the first (initial) major update.  The third number *9.0.0* is the minor release, which has an alphabetic designator when not 0 (last used for Logos 5.2b 5.2.2).  The *0022* means this is Logos 9.0 build number 22.  Faithlife development resets the build number to 0 for each major release.  The initial public 9.1 Beta 1 (9.1.0.0003) had 3 builds by the Faithlife development t (…)

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!! Frequently Asked Questions

* *What are the benefits of joining the beta program ?* Provides you an opportunity to give feedback to Logos developers about new features, and can help speed up development, and give you some influence on how features are developed along with being able to use new feature(s) month(s) before everyone else.

* *Is it safe to join the beta program ?* If you rely on Logos 8 and/or Verbum 8 for sermon preparation or education classes, then you should make sure you have a Stable version installed on another user account or another computer. That way if you have a non-recoverable crash, or an important feature just won't work, you'll still be able to teach! There is also a risk that a Beta version will corrupt your documents (such as notes, collections, favorites, shortcuts, etc.), and that this corrupti (…)

* *Can I withdraw from the beta program ?* Beta bugginess is not for everyone (fixing some bugs spans several Beta releases). However, downgrading in middle of a beta development cycle is difficult; see previous question for *potential corruption risk*.  If want to downgrade from Beta to Stable version, need to *completely uninstall Beta* before installing Stable.  Optionally can use scan command to identify, copy, and index resources from a Beta installation.

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