dogfood

dogfood
 n.

   [Microsoft, Netscape] Interim software used internally for testing.
   "To eat one's own dogfood" (from which the slang noun derives) means
   to use the software one is developing, as part of one's everyday
   development environment (the phrase is used outside Microsoft and
   Netscape). The practice is normal in the Linux community and
   elsewhere, but the term `dogfood' is seldom used as open-source betas
   tend to be quite tasty and nourishing. The idea is that developers who
   are using their own software will quickly learn what's missing or
   broken. Dogfood is typically not even of {beta} quality.
    

eating one's own dogfood
dogfood
dogfooding
eating your own dogfood

   <programming> When a developer uses their own code for their
   own daily needs.  Being a user as well as a developer creates
   the user empathy that is the hallmark of good software.

   The term seems to have originated at {Microsoft}.

   (http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2004/04/16.html)

   (2006-12-12)