In education and in human computer interaction practitioners use summative and formative evaluation. In education the term summative means a form of evaluation undertaken at the end of a period of study, and typically used for the assessment of students. A traditional examination paper would be in this category for example. Similarly in the HCI world a summative evaluation takes place at or near the end of the development life cycle. The summative evaluation of a design takes place at the end of the design cycle.
Summative evaluation is often a feature of beta test software.
Another application for summative evaluation is to compare two or more products. In both the education and the HCI world summative evaluation happens at the end of a development process. The term formative evaluation in the world of education means a form of evaluation that takes place during the learning process, and is used to develop or 'form' the student's learning. This kind of evaluation may be self assessment, or peer or tutor assessed. Completing exercises to help you to learn is an example of formative evaluation.