Why did MS release the Alpha Tech Prv to the public?

[fatclue_98]

With all the hoops one has to go through to get the TP, I'm having a hard time understanding how anyone can be complaining. It's not like we don't have threads dedicated to the TP and the associated issues. Microsoft certainly did not hold a gun to anybody's head to install the TP. It's not like installing is as simple as pressing one button. If you have TP, it was a willful decision to do so and every warning was ignored.
Sent from my Slime Green Lumia 1520

 

[ODwyerPW]

So that folks like myself could examine features and give Microsoft my vote on what is useful, what has improved, or what was better left alone.

I expected instability (though an initial failure to wakeup from screen saber mode surprised me)... so I played in the sandbox over the weekend...

Had some show stopper issues, but fixed them with a simple Phone RESET (not OS reload)... and then a restore of a Backup. Extremely stable now. Had I found it too unstable to use, I would have gone forward with my plan to Recover to Windows Phone 8.1. However, it's stable enough to be useful now, so I'll continue to keep it on my phone and provide meaningful feedback on apps and features...

I'm withholding the 'stability of the build' comments... as I understand this tech preview is only to show case new features and to give us a general idea of how Windows 10 will look and work....

 

[fatclue_98]

So that folks like myself could examine features and give Microsoft my vote on what is useful, what has improved, or what was better left alone.

I expected instability (though an initial failure to wakeup from screen saber mode surprised me)... so I played in the sandbox over the weekend...

Had some show stopper issues, but fixed them with a simple Phone RESET (not OS reload)... and then a restore of a Backup. Extremely stable now. Had I found it too unstable to use, I would have gone forward with my plan to Recover to Windows Phone 8.1. However, it's stable enough to be useful now, so I'll continue to keep it on my phone and provide meaningful feedback on apps and features...

I'm withholding the 'stability of the build' comments... as I understand this tech preview is only to show case new features and to give us a general idea of how Windows 10 will look and work....

Mister, you have some nerve to come on here and post a rational thought like that. I'm gonna keep an eye on you and make sure you don't start rocking the boat and injecting sanity on these boards.

Excellent job, looking forward to more.

 

[MoshMast]

I think I've underestimated how easy it is for people to confuse "help shape Windows 10" (Features) vs "help fix Windows 10 (bugs).

I always thought it was pretty clear that we were given this ability to use the Technical Preview in order for us to provide feedback on features and how the operating system functions, not so we can fix bugs in the operation system and become frustrated when a product that hasn't even finished being made isn't living up to our expectations.

 

[SDKevin]

Feedback App was non-functional on my Lumia 1020. I think MS gave plenty warning that the outcome might be bad. I'm so happy my 1020 rolled back to 8.1.

 

[Protocol Rahul]

Running both Windows 10 TP for desktop and phone as a primary device, apart from some pesky bugs, it's been a superb experience for me so far.
For the phone part, yes it more unstable compared to my desktop one, but still doesn't affect my daily needs from either device. Keep releasing Microsoft, People gonna whine for almost anything. I suffered more problems using developer preview with 8.1 then on 10 TP, so that didn't mean developer preview should have been scrapped.
I am loving the new features, and seriously can't go back to 8, feels more limiting now although stable, win8 is boring for me now.

 

[mmcpher]

Bring back "Partition Stitching"! I never knew I had it so good! I may have to roll back, but am glad for the chance to try it out and to send feedback. I can't hang on for 50 days with this build in this kind of shape. But it remains a work in progress and I won't blame MS if they give us a chance at our own risk. Maybe they glean something from the feedback, even the rollbacks. I would rather see this kind of risky open responsiveness than to hang by my thumbs for months and then just taking a widely untested plunge.

 

[Marco Nilsson]

Microsoft has been releasing alpha builds to a select group of people for months now.... It's called people in the fast ring. If you want it to be more stable, pick the slow ring.

They have? I've been in the fast ring for months and I got the first update yesterday. IMO the fast track should get the builds in a FAR faster pace, maybe once a week.

 

[TechFreak1]

Some things are even hard to test to even report bugs. Photos app, worked in the.beginning, won't even open now, for example.

And yes, people were warned, and it wasn't shoved down anyone's throats. But MS Will now.have feedback clogged with complaints rather than just bug or improvement feedback. More nonsense to weed through

Use the screen shot feature, volume down + power key takes a screenshot and launches the feedback on the preview for phones.

Sure, there are many that have filled the feedback inbox with "unnecessary" drudge but with-in that muck there is alot of wealth of information from which they derive what features should get implemented or refined. This by no means - a design-by-committee-product.

I'm not sure what more MS could have done for the folks who bricked their devices - there were multiple messages that it's unreleased, incomplete and may break hardware etc that people had to click to accept.

There does seem to have been a lot of people who ignored that. I suggest a USD50 enrollment fee may have been useful in elevating the quality of feedback they'll get.

I respectively disagree, by charging a fee for entry - gives a person the sense of entitlement to a refund or reimbursement of their loss.

Also charging a fee such as $50 is a great barrier to entry for some and to state that will increase the quality of the feedback is just silly lol. That is like saying people who can't afford to pay don't have the right to a say or are dumb. Talk about blind-side inequality... eash :winktongue:.

What about all the people who have more money than sense?
They have better understanding right? :grincry:

So under your proposal, people like myself would have no right to give feedback unless they saved and paid that access fee...

 

[hotphil]

They have? I've been in the fast ring for months and I got the first update yesterday.

Correct. This was the second preview build released to some devices. It was released to more devices than the first one (which would probably be why it was the first one your device picked up). Not sure what the other poster is on about.

 

[stephen_az]

MS really didn't need tens of thousands of people to "test" an Alpha build. They dont release Alpha desktop builds to the public so why did they do this with their Phone OS? They could have easily, and perhaps more smartly, released this to a small number (500-1000) of people to test for bugs. Especially if it is not going to be updated often. There really is a limited amount of things you can do with your smart phone. Chances are, most bugs have been reported now in a couple days, probably just about everything that could be found screwy has been reported through the feedback app. So if MS waits another month or so for an update, was there really a point to releasing an Alpha build to the general public?

As happy as I am to have been able to try this, I think MS made a mistake here. As I said, they do not do this for desktop OS's as far as I know. Yes they do beta previews on occasion. And I understand people we warned but MS had to of known, many many people who really had no business installing this did so, are now ticked off because their phone is bricked, OS is unstable, etc. Mainly because people have been dying for WP10 for a year now. MS perhaps, should've just kept it internal and to limited people until a Dev Preview, which seems to be months and months away.

Im just curious if they had another reason to do this. Perhaps, knowing they're behind schedule and not as quick as the desktop division, they just wanted to give people a taste. I dont know, but it does seem like a curious decision to me now that its actually happened. Ive got two phones now, so Ill keep it on one, but honestly wont use it much more. Reported bugs Ive found and most other bugs I found are already reported. There is nothing new in this OS that is actually that great or working smoothly that would have me playing around with it or using it for that much longer. Another reason, they should've just kept it to a limited group, imo.

They have released TPs for both the Desktop and Phone OSs. There is no mystery about that and I am not sure how someone could install the Phone TP without knowing this. The references to the Desktop TP is all over the Windows Insider pages. It is a change in policy with which I do not agree but it is hardly because they are behind schedule. It is just a change to expand the testing base and nothing more.

BTW, testing with 1000 people, etc., is absolutely useless unless you are designing something for 1000 people. They passed that phase on this a long time ago and have (again) been very clear about that fact. The OS went through internal testing; then was released to a small number of models; then to the larger number. This is all SOP, except they have expanded the user pool. Again, I do not agree with the change because it has allowed many people who probably shouldn't even be allowed smart phones to install something and then whine about it, in spite of the unending warnings and disclaimers. There is, however, nothing unusual about the process.

As for you concluding statement, wouldn't that then suggest you should have read all the disclaimers and not installed it? You may see nothing new worth your effort to play but those roughed out features are specifically what people need to test. Alpha and beta testing are a waste of time if you have everything done when it is distributed. That is not even a consumer preview - it is a trial of the RTM version.

 

[iamakii]

I love the TP for phones on my 1520. It's really rough but I can try new apps (esp the new outlook and calendar!) and send feedback. Good times

 

[someone2639]

Maybe. Another negative of it though is you get a lot of users who really don't know any better or don't really know what they're talking about and submit useless feedback. Id think fewer, more experienced users could have been a better option.

But as I said, Im keeping it on one phone. But at this point, in just two days, Ive tested all I could. Its not stable enough and the new features arent working well enough or just non-existant at this point to even bother picking up my test phone device much anymore until an update comes out. There's really just so much you can test or try on here and the instability and inconsistently will keep most from using it for much longer.

Quick fix: Put disclaimer in the feedback app and every other complaint barn saying "If something doesn't work, we tried to warn you."

 

[hotphil]

Quick fix: Put disclaimer in the feedback app and every other complaint barn saying "If something doesn't work, we tried to warn you."

Sadly, I imagine folk would take as much heed of that as they did with all the warning messages they had to agree before installation. I still say charge cash money for it. And make it some minority crypto-currency so you've REALLY got to want to be bothered to participate.

 

[Sebastianx]

Same sentiments but Microsoft didn't force anyone to update your phone to technical preview. There have been a lot of disclaimers and they also posted known issues before you update. What I cant accept that they owe us 1 build since they didn't release a build for the month of march so they should have a lot of time minimizing the known issues and squatting bugs but the known issues has been blown out of proportion. The known issues is way more than the build change log. Also I don't understand why Microsoft seems to make every apps on their platform on beta. Dafuq is that? Microsoft Office, Outlook Mail and Calendar has been rocking iOS and Android for a quite a long time since they acquired Acompli and Sunrise. We waited and waited and end up with a build without Office, OneNote and a beta Calendar and Outlook like WTH.

 

[someone2639]

Sadly, I imagine folk would take as much heed of that as they did with all the warning messages they had to agree before installation. I still say charge cash money for it. And make it some minority crypto-currency so you've REALLY got to want to be bothered to participate.

So like advanced status in a graphing calculator community? That's pretty obscure.

 

[Pierre Blackwell]

I think exposing the technical preview to the common public is an ingenious move by MSFT, and is shows that they intend to connect with the common user on a more intrusive level. When it comes to those who are technically literate the changes that would be proposed would definitely be beneficial to MSFT, however that's not the only consumers of computer technology nor the most valuable, because they're going to be reliant on services and functionality being provided without explanation, or understanding. This is why it's so incumbent that those individuals provide feedback as well. The rants and complaints are simply that, complaints, usually by those who don't truly understand about the concept of what an OS build in "alpha" or even "beta" means. However those same people will be complaining about the complete build as well, with the same minimalistic understanding of the inner workings of a complete OS with firmware and everything. That's the nature of the beast. The advantage we now have it to be more cerebral in providing feedback because we have the ability to use the unfinished product, and though the complaints may be completely asinine, as the builds progress, so will the understanding....hopefully. The fact that MSFT puts out alerts, and blogs, and service announcements, and recommendations, and disclaimers about uploading new builds is just more reinforcement that MSFT is trying to reinvent the image that they've established from the beginning. The big bad software company that knows you're going to use what they put out, and doesn't care about how you feel about it, because it's the only service. The reality is, it's not anymore, and if they want a stronger customer relationship, they need a stronger dialogue of communication with the base, and that starts with allowing the consumers, all of them to provide feedback on the services they will be utilizing.

 

[TechAbstract]

I installed Windows 10 on my spare phones, a spare PC, and a spare USB flash drive. Don't really see what the issue is

 

[TheCudder]

They have? I've been in the fast ring for months and I got the first update yesterday. IMO the fast track should get the builds in a FAR faster pace, maybe once a week.

Weekly may be pushing it, but after the release of 10049 (for W10 for desktops/tablets) MSFT said they would be releasing builds (phone & desktop) more frequently for the future builds in the Fast ring.

 

[prasath1234]

Luckily I did not install this alpha.Happily staying in Wp 8.1 for ever.I do not like windows 10 for phone.Going to stay with wp 8.1 which is smooth for me