Beta Component Guidelines

Beta component guidelines establish expectations for components that are approaching stability but not yet production-ready. Beta status indicates components are more mature than experimental but still subject to potential changes. Clear guidelines help consumers understand what beta means and how to use beta components appropriately.

What Are Beta Component Guidelines

Beta guidelines define the expectations, commitments, and recommended practices for components in beta status. They specify what stability consumers can expect, what changes might occur, what support is available, and how consumers should approach beta component usage.

Beta represents an intermediate maturity level. Components have progressed beyond experimental instability. APIs are largely settled but may still evolve. Documentation and testing are more complete. Beta components are candidates for promotion to stable status.

How Beta Component Guidelines Work

Stability expectations clarify what might change. Beta APIs may evolve but changes will be communicated. Breaking changes are possible but should be infrequent. Migration support may be provided for significant changes. Clear expectations help consumers assess risk.

Usage recommendations guide appropriate beta adoption. Beta components may suit non-critical features, new projects without legacy constraints, or teams willing to migrate if needed. Critical production systems might wait for stable status. Recommendations help consumers make informed decisions.

Feedback emphasis encourages input from beta users. Beta periods exist partly to gather real-world feedback. Channels for reporting issues, suggesting improvements, and sharing experiences should be clear. Consumer input shapes final stable form.

Promotion criteria explain what must happen for beta to become stable. Criteria might include API stability over time, documentation completeness, accessibility compliance, performance verification, and sufficient production usage without problems. Transparency about criteria helps consumers anticipate promotion.

Timeline expectations indicate how long beta periods typically last. Timelines may be explicit (this component will be beta for approximately 3 months) or relative (promotion depends on feedback and issue resolution). Timeline communication helps consumers plan.

Key Considerations

• Beta should mean something distinct from experimental; do not use it as indefinite limbo
• Beta commitments should be honored; breaking changes should be communicated
• Beta feedback should actually influence decisions; otherwise the period is hollow
• Promotion criteria should be achievable; do not set impossible standards
• Beta components deserve quality support even if not yet stable

Common Questions

How should breaking changes be handled for beta components?

Beta breaking changes warrant lighter process than stable components but still need communication. Announce changes in release notes with migration guidance. Provide reasonable time between announcement and change when feasible. Offer migration support like codemods when changes are significant. The beta designation permits more change flexibility, but surprising consumers undermines trust. Communicate that changes may occur while still treating beta users with respect when changes happen.

When should consumers start using beta components?

Timing depends on use case and risk tolerance. Early beta adoption suits consumers who want to influence final form through feedback, have non-critical use cases, or are comfortable with migration if needed. Waiting for stable status suits critical production systems, consumers without migration capacity, or those who prioritize stability over early access. There is no universal right timing; each consumer should evaluate their context.

Summary

Beta component guidelines establish expectations for near-stable components through stability expectations, usage recommendations, feedback emphasis, promotion criteria, and timeline indications. Beta represents meaningful progress beyond experimental with settled-but-potentially-evolving APIs. Breaking changes should be communicated with migration support. Consumers should evaluate their risk tolerance and use case criticality when deciding when to adopt beta components.