Joost 1.0 beta released for Mac and PC

You know, normally when a software company releases version 1.0 that means it's time for the product to leave beta. But Joost 1.0 is out this weekend, and it's still in private beta. That means you can only download a copy if you're already a beta tester or have a friend who's willing to share an invite.

And that might not be such a bad thing, because despite the new 1.0 label, Joost is still definitely beta software. Version 1.0 sports a redesigned interface, improved performance with low-performing internt connections, and an integrated update service so you won't need to download an installer from the web next time you want to install a new release.

Or at least, that's what the release notes say. We weren't able to see the new interface on either of our test rigs running Windows Vista. While we followed the directions requiring Vista users to install Joost 1.0 as an administrator, we couldn't get the channel menu to show up. When Joost 1.0 loads, it automatically begins playing the last video we'd been watching. But if you want to change channels or switch to another video in the same channel, you're out of luck. Or at least we are. Anyone have a better experience with this "update?"

Update: It looks like Joost has added a download link to their front page, meaning the public beta has begun. No more invitations needed. Also, a few days into the beta, we noticed that our difficulty pulling up the channel guide has disappeared. Perhaps it was a network congestion issue, but the beta seems to be working well now. And finally, Joost has added links to featured content to their web page. Want to watch La Femme Nikita episodes? Just click the "play now" button to launch Joost and the show will begin to play.

[via eFluxMedia]