It is weekend, which means I have a few minutes to rant about my frustration on the direction MS is going concerning Mobile Apps (the so called Metro/Modern/Universal Apps) and Windows 10.
As you may recall, Microsoft put out the news this week they will nix their Lync Metro App in preference of the Desktop Skype App. Of course all the yuppies were clapping and shouting “giddy on” to Microsoft without considering the consequences and the trend this is setting.
The trend I see at the moment is the rejuvenation of the Desktop, a complete reversal of Microsoft from its mobile-first strategy of two or three years ago. Put bluntly, the Desktop people have won at Microsoft. Fine and good you say, but it didn’t address the reason why MS went full mobile a few years ago.
Yes, Microsoft is doubling down on the Desktop at the moment, but to what end? There’s a complete new generation of users out there that are growing up on mobile applications, yes, on touch only devices and applications. MS may be winning the desktop strategy right now, but where will it be in 20yrs time. That is why we had the mobile madness of two years ago that is being thrown out the windows right now. Yes, pun intended.
So, MS is focusing on Desktop apps right now to the detriment of Mobile apps. They threw out the Lync Mobile app, every one should install the Desktop Skype App. Take a look at the OneNote Mobile App on Windows 10, it is a joke compared to the Windows 8.1 and iPad versions. You can’t even change the Font, not to talk of full formatting UX. If you look at the twitter stream of the OneNote team, it is all about the Desktop OneNote App. And so may examples of Mobile Apps of Microsoft collecting dust in the Store.
Fine and good. So what happens now to Modern apps from Microsoft on Mobile devices? I and a number of you have Microsoft’s SurfaceRT, how does MS want us to run Lync/Skype on this device now they’re shutting down the Lync mobile app? Windows 10 Mobile is coming out shortly on less than 8″ devices without Desktop, how does MS want users to run core Mobile apps on these devices if they nix all their mobile apps? Yes, Lync mobile is now down and out, which mobile app are they nixing next?
Meanwhile the competition are preparing the next generation of users to work exclusively with mobile or touch apps. So MS is expecting this to die and collapse like for iPad loosing traction? You bet mobile apps are not going to die, they will continue to evolve and eat into MS core sectors. So what is MS going to do about it? Stick its head deeper in the sand and pretend problem doesn’t exist there?
Yes, there are some of us that are protesting Microsoft killed Windows 8.1 too soon. It is a good OS on a Touch device. All the people that were complaining before buying a Touch device with Win8 come to a change of mind after using the OS on a touch device. I’ve seen a few examples here in family & friends circles. MS should not have listened to the yuppie Tech bloggers slamming Win8, but should have watched the trend on use-case shown in Telemetry and on steady monthly climb of Win8 on Stats sites like StatCounter etc.
So, you may be cheering Microsoft for killing the Lync mobile App for the Desktop App, I am not cheering at all. I want MS to be present and continue to innovate on the Touch-only world, not cling to the mouse and keyboard world alone. I like the direction of Windows 10, bridging Touch and Mouse/Keyboard world, I think we are making progress there, that is then why I don’t get the need to kill mobile Apps at this point in time. I say keep developing Apps in both environments. When I am on my mobile device, I DON’T want too use desktop Apps, period!
Remember MS, these tech-yuppies cheering you on are ALL on iOS for their mobile device usage, they only blog on the desktop. They don’t represent your complete user-base. Just food for thought there.
Rants out here, now your turn.
I wish all these people with their “rants” would get over themselves!!
“This windows 8 metro design for touch devices is the biggest Microsoft fail EVER.”
“Windows is focusing on Desktop and ignoring the touch devices!”
What do you people want?!
You sound like a bunch of children throwing tantrums, because you have to choose one toy and want the whole store! Please keep your useless opinions to yourselves and let the world get on with their lives. I’m sick and tired of having my news feed full of this nonsense.
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I can understand your frustration with the rant, but the point is, is it justified or not. So you want MS to keep clinging to the Desktop for the foreseeable future?
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That’s not my point.
I love Windows 8 and the metro interface and even the Windows Phone interface. It’s due to community complaints that they had to alter their direction and yet everybody is still on the “hate Microsoft” bandwagon.
My opinion is simply, give feedback and stop whining. Help make the existing products better instead of shooting it down in flames. There’s a fine line between giving constructive criticism and being a negative complainer.
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Good point. Now, if you know us here at McAkins Online, you’ll know we are more about MS than anything else. And being positive about MS is all we’re about here.
Despite the fact that we have private channels with which we give feedbacks to Microsoft, believe me, there’s a lot of feedback going to MS from the members of this blog, still there are some topics that needs to be made public so it can be debated to gain critical mass.
The point I raised here above is genuine concern for mobile users who don’t have the Desktop on their mobile device. MS has responded to our criticism that they’re integrating Skype as infra to everything MS, but before then everyone should use Skype Desktop. Question is what are mobile users to use then before MS is finished with integration in Fall? Why nix now when you can nix in the fall when you’re done with integration.
See my point there?
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I understand your point and share in your frustration when you specify that Microsoft is dropping support on sections that are still in use, leaving the consumer with no option than to use the device as a paper weight and buy a new one.
Coming back to my point, people are quick to voice their “opinions” in the form of a rant bordering on hate speech when many other companies follow the exact same strategy without prosecution. To name one example, Samsung brings out new mobile phones almost quarterly and upgrades to new versions of the Android OS are discontinued even before a device has turned 2 years old. Most of the mobile contracts run for 2 years, which means by the time you are due for an upgrade to a new device, your existing device is already a couple of versions behind. It may not cause you to not be able to make use of any apps, but it does affect certain apps to a degree, as well as OS features which could have come in handy.
My point is not that your article do not have a foot to stand on, my point is that your attitude in blogging about it is old and tiresome.
I would like to read content that is put together in a professional manner explaining the specific problem and providing useful solutions or suggestions in an attempt to move forward. I tire of reading “rants” that sounds like a 16 year old that’s angry at his parents for not buying him a car for his birthday. Very unprofessional and very annoying.
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