Release candidates are versions of a new program that are functional, but not quite ready to offer for sale to the general public. Generally, a release candidate exhibits a few basic qualities that make it a work in progress, including the demonstration of potential to be a hit with consumers. However, the program is still in need of some tweaking before the release can take place.

In some quarters, the terms “release candidate” and “beta version” are used interchangeably. However, this is not strictly correct. A release candidate, like a beta version, is currently working, but has several identified glitches that must be addressed before the program can be test marketed to a small sector of consumers. By contrast, the beta version has generally already been refined to fix those identified bugs, and is ready for limited use and evaluation by a handful of consumers. This in essence makes the release candidate the precursor to the beta version.

Of course, the ultimate goal of the release candidate is to emerge as a final product that will catch the interest of consumers and result in wide spread popularity for the new software offering. Because consumers tend to have little to no patience with software that interacts poorly with existing programs and operating systems, developers will do a great deal of testing and refining with the release candidate before the first consumer test is conducted. This will include trying the software on many different platforms and run it alongside other popular programs to determine if there are any negative consequences.

When bugs are discovered in a release candidate, the issue is addressed and the testing continues to ensure the fix did not create a new problem with various operating systems and software. Once the developers are certain that the release candidate is efficient and presents no major issues, the program can move on to the beta stage and be test driven by a few consumers. As consumers identify usage issues or other problems that were not identified previously, these glitches are fixed and the final version is made available to the public. While the process can take time, the delivery of final products that create little or no usage issues for consumers helps to make the product successful and attractive.