It is hard to believe that the Windows Insider Program launched ten years ago. On September 30, 2014, Microsoft unveiled its new strategy for public Windows testing, allowing everyone to join the development process, try preview builds on the fly, and provide direct feedback to Microsoft. It feels like it was just yesterday, and now we are celebrating its 10th anniversary.
The Windows Insider Program launched to critical acclaim, attracting thousands of enthusiasts willing to play with early Windows 10 builds. There was also that great feeling of importance in being able to "shape the future of Windows." Now, ten years later, it seems like the excitement has worn off, and the program is in dire need of some changes. Here are five things that Microsoft should consider tweaking (some grunting ahead).
1. Make it less confusing
Ten years ago, the Insider program was very simple and straightforward: We had the Fast Ring with the latest, albeit unstable, changes and a Slow Ring with fewer updates but better quality. New features would appear first in Fast Ring and then move to Slow Ring in a few weeks.
These days, we have four channels: Canary, Dev, Beta, and Release Preview, and things are a bit messy. The proper build hierarchy is almost non-existent, with new features often appearing first in "lower" channels, such as Beta or even Release Preview, which are supposed to be more polished and near production-ready. How can a feature be properly tested if it makes its first appearance in the Beta Channel (formerly Slow Ring)?
The "Account Manager" in the Start menu is just one example of Microsoft shipping an untested feature to Beta users, completely ignoring Canary and Dev, and then receiving quite a lot of discontent for the poor implementation.
If you are a Windows enthusiast who wants to risk it all and install the latest preview build to try everything new in Windows 11, good luck trying to figure out what channel you should select. Some stuff is in Beta but not in Dev, some is in Release Preview but not in Beta, and so forth. It is very confusing and makes almost no sense, considering the nature of the program and the meaning of each channel.
2. Channels inside Channels
The "Get the latest updates as soon as they"re available" option in Windows Update settings seems like one of the most illogical features of the Windows Insider program.
In stable Windows releases, the toggle serves as an option to test non-security updates (C-release) with quality-of-life improvements and some new features. It makes sense outside the Insider program, but it absolutely has no place inside it.
These days, many Dev and Beta builds come with two separate changelogs: one for those with the toggle on and one for those with the toggle off, essentially splitting each channel into two sub-channels. Why? I already enrolled my computer in the Dev Channel, I already acknowledged the risks of using pre-release software, and I already know that the Dev Channel might be less stable. Why does Microsoft tip-toe around me with such a babysitting approach?
It is almost like Microsoft suffers from a channel shortage or something. And I do not even mention the fact that changelogs in those split channels are often small and contain minor changes to justify such careful rollouts.
3. Rolling out gradually
You cannot ship everything here and now if you have over 1.5 billion machines with thousands of different configurations. A gradual feature rollout is a reasonable approach to ensure that your latest update does not wreak havoc among users.
However, a preview program does not feel like a place for such things. You ship a feature in a properly unstable channel like Canary or Dev without being afraid to break things (again, users accepted the risk and terms), monitor data from insiders, make the necessary changes, and move it next to Beta and then to Release Preview for additional tests, like in the early days of the Insider Program.
It seems like Microsoft has lost its way and forgotten about the meaning of the Windows Insider program. With too many users onboard and every channel open to the average Joe, Microsoft appears to be treating insiders like regular consumers with stable builds, hence controlled feature rollouts, split channels, and other nonsense. Somehow, all of that was not required in the early days, when most builds were filled to the brim with new things. These days, we need gradual rollouts for taskbar fixes.
4. Improve communication
Part of my daily routine as a Microsoft reporter is constantly checking the already-published release notes for the latest or previously released builds. Microsoft often updates changelogs with additional information about new features, bugs, and other changes, so I have to keep an eye on them to report to readers. The worst part is that those changes are rarely communicated, and acknowledged bugs, important issues, feature rollbacks, and even entire build recalls often go unnoticed past insiders.
Yes, Windows Insider product managers sometimes notify users about newly documented features in release notes (after other insiders discover and report them), but I cannot remember seeing such posts about bugs and other "unexciting" changes. In a program made to gather feedback from users on such a complex product, I feel like Microsoft should better communicate what is going on with its latest builds, especially in light of overly controlled rollouts. On the one hand, Microsoft seems afraid to ship a buggy change to all testers, and on the other, it does not want to communicate new findings and bugs. After all, how hard is it to post a tweet that a recent changelog was updated to acknowledge a single new bug?
In all fairness, Microsoft recently tweeted about a new known bug in the latest Canary Channel, but it was such a rare occurrence (and a pretty big issue) that the point remains valid.
Besides, not every Windows user has an account on X. But every copy of Windows has the Feedback Hub app, so why not use it for extra communication with Insiders? For example, you enroll your device in the Insider program and agree that Microsoft will send you notifications about new builds, changelog updates, bugs, and other stuff.
5. Bring back the excitement
I am a day-one Windows Insider (including Windows 10 Mobile, but let"s not pick at old wounds), and I have seen a lot, tried almost every build, and spent countless hours in the Feedback Hub. I might have become jaded over the last ten years, but many people agree that the original excitement of the Windows Insider program is no longer with us.
In the early days, a new build was an occasion, a big release full of changes. These days, though, with builds dropping left and right every week (minus the Canary Channel, which recently experienced a massive by modern standards, month-long pause), it is very hard to be excited about a new release, especially if you have to play the lottery and hope for the winning ticket to get even minor changes. Just why bother?
Also, we no longer have technical, in-depth posts from Microsoft explaining big changes and platform improvements in the latest builds (I do not count the recent damage-controlling Recall announcement). Heck, Microsoft celebrated the program"s 10th anniversary with two wallpapers. I mean, they are nice, but seriously, two wallpapers?
The company offloaded a big part of Windows testing onto volunteers" shoulders. I am not expecting Microsoft to start paying Insiders for their efforts, but some incentives and encouragement would not hurt. This three-trillion-dollar company probably can afford small rewards for its most active and loyal insiders to reignite the interest and attract new, actually active and useful insiders.
Remember Microsoft handing out Windows 7 Ultimate keys for providing a certain amount of feedback concluding the public testing period? Neowin co-founder, Steven Parker still has his. Nowadays, we have badges in the Feedback Hub and wallpapers. You can do better, Microsoft.
What do you think about the current state of the Windows Insider program? Do you think it needs some changes? Share your thoughts in the comments.