I have only beta tested two products so far, both of them very near to completion when I received the products. People who say "beta testers get things for free" are so wrong. I install the product using the readme as if I were a clueless Poser user. Then I spend hours rendering, rotating, posing, and scrutinizing, taking notes the whole time. I have several sets of lights that I render each POV from that makes it easier to find seams or flaws. I then spend an hour or two doing clean renders of any problems I find and then writing up a 2-5 page critique. Then I upload the renders to my web server and mail the feedback. THEN, when the product is pretty complete, I do at least one piece, sometimes two, of the product in question for the gallery/product showcase as a courtesy. (I am not an outstanding artist or anything, but I have been pretty pleased with the beta test images I have done in the sense that they really show the character in question in a good light). This usually takes another couple of hours at the minimum. So far I have gone through this process twice for each product I have tested, but they were "small" in the sense that they were characters, not clothing or scenes. I would say on the average that I have spent 8-15 hours with each product. This is not "for free." =)

I am new to testing, but I like doing it. I hope to sell things in the marketplace myself someday, and testing for merchants gives me a great inside view of the product creation process.

Thanks for this post, Mendhi. Hopefully it clears up some confusion about the beta testing process for people under the impression that it's just a matter of getting free product and doing a render. =)