The Windows Store, as everyone knows, is only a few steps above disaster in terms of app selection, discovery, and even the technical side is lacking (48GB redownloads, seriously?)
Developers don't care about using the developer bridge because nobody seems to use the Windows Store much. Windows 10 S plans to force users to use the Windows Store, hopefully boosting the Windows Store's popularity... or it will just have developers saying to "Upgrade to Pro" to install my app instead.
Here are a few ideas for Microsoft, that I thought would list, because I am partially curious on what people think of these ideas, or if they have more suggestions. Alas, this is what I wish would happen, but I doubt most will come true.
1) Officially Deprecate Windows 8/8.1 apps - most are poorly written, work terribly, and are just "filler." Stop using them to pad the Store numbers - drop them. Preferably in 1803. Developers update, or get left behind.
2) Be strong with developers - Many Windows 10 apps in the Store are filler too, and don't follow Microsoft's guidelines almost at all. Stand up, Microsoft, and tell developers - follow the guidelines, or don't get published. If they won't follow the guidlines, their app probably wasn't a quality app anyway.
3) Make the bridge even simpler - Yes, the bridge is relatively simple, but developers don't want to spend a lot of effort (e.g. an afternoon or several) trying to learn how the bridge works - or spending the $100 to upgrade to Windows 10 Pro on an unproven store. Make a simple, GUI converter, and advisably allow free upgrades to Pro for registered App Devs. Make it only take 10 minutes, on the first try, to convert a Win32 app. Don't make it take an afternoon to learn all of the PowerShell switches.
4) Partner with Steam - Face it, Steam owns PC Gaming, and that will pretty much not change no matter how hard Microsoft tries, though Microsoft owns console gaming. So, you might as well partner with them instead for the "Games" category on PCs...
5) Make the jump and turn "Warn me when installing apps from outside the Store" on by default on Windows 10 Home. -Obviously, you can set it back to never warn, but just this switch will help with discoverability.
6) Fix extensions, add "Personalization" tab - When I install AdBlock Plus for Microsoft Edge, for example, why is it showing in my Apps list? Same for when I install a wallpaper - why, when I install a new theme, does it show in the Apps list? To make "Personalization" more obvious, make it a Store tab.
7) Make Windows Store for Android and Roku, mainly for the movie rentals. - Why would you rent a movie from Windows Store, if you can't watch it on your Roku smart TV? Might as well rent it from Amazon then...
8) Add PWAs with all of your might - I know this is happening, can't wait. Even better, what if you could call Windows APIs from PWA? I know you can in "Hosted Web Apps", but PWA support would be best. The more you can integrate PWA with the rest of the system, the better.
Developers don't care about using the developer bridge because nobody seems to use the Windows Store much. Windows 10 S plans to force users to use the Windows Store, hopefully boosting the Windows Store's popularity... or it will just have developers saying to "Upgrade to Pro" to install my app instead.
Here are a few ideas for Microsoft, that I thought would list, because I am partially curious on what people think of these ideas, or if they have more suggestions. Alas, this is what I wish would happen, but I doubt most will come true.
1) Officially Deprecate Windows 8/8.1 apps - most are poorly written, work terribly, and are just "filler." Stop using them to pad the Store numbers - drop them. Preferably in 1803. Developers update, or get left behind.
2) Be strong with developers - Many Windows 10 apps in the Store are filler too, and don't follow Microsoft's guidelines almost at all. Stand up, Microsoft, and tell developers - follow the guidelines, or don't get published. If they won't follow the guidlines, their app probably wasn't a quality app anyway.
3) Make the bridge even simpler - Yes, the bridge is relatively simple, but developers don't want to spend a lot of effort (e.g. an afternoon or several) trying to learn how the bridge works - or spending the $100 to upgrade to Windows 10 Pro on an unproven store. Make a simple, GUI converter, and advisably allow free upgrades to Pro for registered App Devs. Make it only take 10 minutes, on the first try, to convert a Win32 app. Don't make it take an afternoon to learn all of the PowerShell switches.
4) Partner with Steam - Face it, Steam owns PC Gaming, and that will pretty much not change no matter how hard Microsoft tries, though Microsoft owns console gaming. So, you might as well partner with them instead for the "Games" category on PCs...
5) Make the jump and turn "Warn me when installing apps from outside the Store" on by default on Windows 10 Home. -Obviously, you can set it back to never warn, but just this switch will help with discoverability.
6) Fix extensions, add "Personalization" tab - When I install AdBlock Plus for Microsoft Edge, for example, why is it showing in my Apps list? Same for when I install a wallpaper - why, when I install a new theme, does it show in the Apps list? To make "Personalization" more obvious, make it a Store tab.
7) Make Windows Store for Android and Roku, mainly for the movie rentals. - Why would you rent a movie from Windows Store, if you can't watch it on your Roku smart TV? Might as well rent it from Amazon then...
8) Add PWAs with all of your might - I know this is happening, can't wait. Even better, what if you could call Windows APIs from PWA? I know you can in "Hosted Web Apps", but PWA support would be best. The more you can integrate PWA with the rest of the system, the better.
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