On Thursday, Microsoft Corp. notified some of its SQL Server 2005 testers that they are eligible to join the next phase of the “Yukon” beta program.
As noted in a beta tester e-mail note posted on the ieXbeta Web site, Microsoft is seeking customers to join its Technology Adoption Program (TAP) beta program for its next-generation database.
But more interesting than the e-mail itself is TAP.
TAP is the granddaddy of Microsofts beta programs centered on a core group of key customers and partners who are early adopters of key Microsoft technologies.
TAP is not a replacement for Microsofts mega-beta tests (public and private) for products such as Windows, Office and Visual Studio. Instead, its more of an “elite” beta-test program.
TAP, which quietly launched in the fall of 2003, supersedes Microsofts Rapid Deployment Program (RDP), Early Adoption Program (EAP) and Joint Development Program (JDP).
TAP is reserved for a select group of customers and partners with whom Microsoft is interested in holding “an ongoing dialogue on pre-release code,” according to the company.
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