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#21
I've been a Microsoft beta tester since sometime around 1995. I haven't tested every product Microsoft has put out, but enough that I know a little of what goes on without being a 'spurt.
Until Windows 8, Microsoft had a "stable" of experienced and inexperienced beta testers (BTs) from the wild. That is, those not in the TAP program, not MVPs, Corporate and other specialty groups of "first asked to participate" testers. We consisted of what you see in these forums . . . from guru to novice. IOW, a very broad cross-section of Windows users. What this accomplished was to let Microsoft know if the general public would accept what they did with the new product or OS. If this broad cross-section of BTs could easily use the new OS or product, it would be reasonable to expect the general public to do the same.
We had newsgroups where we all discussed things (both right and wrong) with the particular product we were testing. If someone had a problem, like here, everyone jumped in to help. When someone filed a bug, they gave a link to it and there was the "me too", suggested workaround, and even sometimes a solution given. Along with bugs posted, there were also suggestions posted. And, when a bug/suggestion was posted, there was a Microsoft answer to the input, even if it was only "by design". We even had answers that said, "Not now, but maybe in the next version."
We told Microsoft Windows Vista wasn't ready for prime time, but Marketing wouldn't listen to us. It was RTM'd anyway and the rest is history. We really didn't want Windows 7 RTM'd when it was either, but it was in much better shape than Vista when released.
Along came Steven Synofsky and beta testing as we knew it was changed forever! He decided that BTs weren't necessary to Microsoft. All those folks who had tested prior versions of Windows were dumped! I'm sure there were some Windows 8 testers, but none from the wild that I know of. I'm not even sure those who tested were listened to. Surely they wouldn't want such a fiasco loosed on the public!
And now we go to the opposite extreme! Every Tom, Dick and Harry from the wild has Windows 10 TP on his/her machine.
And now, down to the nitty gritty of the matter:
Within the past six months, Microsoft laid off some 18,000(?) employees. That doesn't mean they have 18,000 less people working there . . . some will be replaced with contract labor (you don't have to give benefits to contract labor). I feel like a large number of those contractors will be sifting and documenting the feedback being received on Windows 10. From there, the next tier of contractors will categorize the feedback. And so on . . .
Where are we in the coding process of Windows 10? When I was working on Windows 7, some of us got what was called "dogfood". In plain speak, that's alpha, not yet beta. Even in the dogfood phase, some of the code was so good that I could and did use Windows 7 as my everyday OS. What that means is that some of the code is so set that if you change something, you stand to break something else. I'm not a coder, but I have been told enough that if we change this, we break that, etc. As far as I can tell, Windows 10 is somewhere between Alpha and Beta.
The bottom line is that it's not really whether more people want what I want, but whether I can give you what you want without breaking something else. I'm on a beta that I can't mention because of NDA. We're far enough into the coding that the Team says, "We like your idea, but we can't implement it right now." Or, "Maybe we'll do that in the next version." And, "Thanks for the input. This will be fixed in the next build."
Microsoft wants to make their customers happy. That's the way to sell product. I will say that Microsoft is swinging back to the point that we're getting more options and choices, which were gone for awhile there. So if a compromise is possible, Microsoft will go for it.