Beta testing free of charge?

Possible Duplicate: Advice on getting early Beta testers

I am a representative for Movieggs, a Swedish IT start-up, looking for beta testers. As we are self-funded we do not have the financial strength to contract professional beta testers. If anyone has knowledge about forums or alike where you can post a request for beta testers, please let us know. Movieggs is a software / data base system linking information to online video files. All the best / Joakim Hedvall

If you can't find beta testers, how will you find customers?

Hint: customers make the best beta testers.

If you have no budget to hire or aquire beta testers, best is to run a test study by yourself than skipping it.

There are several methods of user tests like

• Guerilla Test. You grab your laptop go to a coffeeshop, observe them and ask people for their impressions. Give them a coffee for compensation. Ask the owner before if its okay to hang around.
• Online Test. You can use remote desktop sharing tools like Teamviewer for that. But you have to know people before.
• Informal Test. Take your laptop, a second screen, second keyboard and mouse and ask friends or relatives for help. Share a desk: Laptop for you, connect second screen, keyboard and mouse for the participants.
• Lab Test. Very formal test in a dedicated room with spy mirror for the observers.

This are just the ways you can go. But more important is what you learn about it. What data or behaviour do you want to observe. Best you read a little here at UX.stackexchange.

Anyway, even a quick test is most the times an eyeopener for pure developers. Seeing that people use your software in an unintended way or doesn't understand your fancy control is "annoying", but gives you on the long run a sort of trust in the usability of your app.