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View Full Version : On the Left Hand: How Feature Prioritization Happens


Paul Martin
06-13-2007, 03:15 AM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile/archive/2007/06/05/on-the-left-hand-how-feature-prioritization-happens.aspx' target='_blank'>http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile...on-happens.aspx</a><br /><br /></div><i>"With an infinite set of features possible and finite time to do them in, we have to spend a lot of effort deciding which features to do and which not to do. Lacking natural constraints, we’ve had to come up with some other way to make these decisions. In a nutshell, our solution is to come up with a priority for each potential feature and then go through the list in priority order. Nothing earth shattering there. But, literally, every feature we do is a tradeoff against hundreds of others we won’t have time for. So prioritizing them is the only possible way to ever ship anything."</i><br /><br />So, you've submitted that feature request to Microsoft, or another developer, and wait and wait and....why can't they do that simple thing? And why did they add a feature you'll never use but didn't add the "killer feature" that's obvious to you? Mike Calligaro gives us insight into the <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile/archive/2007/06/05/on-the-left-hand-how-feature-prioritization-happens.aspx">feature prioritization process</a> on the Windows Mobile Team Blog. I think it gives us endusers a little understanding into why certain features get added and when. At least it will give you something to think about as you wait. :mrgreen: So, what feature are you waiting for (besides a true close when you tap the "X")?

whydidnt
06-13-2007, 01:38 PM
I think most of us know by now about this process - you have a finite number of resources and an almost infinite number of feature requests. Of course you must prioritize. What chaps me with Windows Mobile/Active Sync/WMDC is how much time is spent on REMOVING features obviously at the request of another part of the corporation. If MS quit taking time to remove things such as WiFi sync, category sync, etc. maybe they'd have enough time to fulfill more of its users wishes. :evil:

So what do I want to see -- I'd like to see WiFi Sync &amp; Category Sync added back. I'd like to see WM sync with Vista's built in PIM applications. I'd like to see true VGA support, not the pixel doubled stuff MS has decided is good enough, (At least there is some improvement with IE in WM6). I'd like to see true one-handed support, not the sort of half effort they've given so far. One only has to use a Palm Treo for about 15 seconds to see how do this right. It's an obvious afterthought at MS and hampers on-the-go usability considerably.

pjax
06-13-2007, 03:40 PM
a reliable alarm/notifications. jeez why can't they solve this problem?!?! that's like the essence of PDAs.

or an OS that you don't have to soft-reset every day. good thing I can do a lot more else with WM that's why i still put up with it.

new features? hmm, can't think of much, aside from optimization changes (SD expansion and not mini/micro, standard 3.5mm audio jack)

oh and activesync that syncs any file/folder from anywhere in your pc to anywhere in your PDA (storage card included)

volwrath
06-13-2007, 04:52 PM
My alarms/notifications always work on my 700WX. As far as I am concerned that is fixed.

My thoughts are:
Sync to any folder anywhere would be nice.
Bring back wifi sync.
Fix crappy bluetooth stack.
Support of SDHC

Eriq Cook
06-13-2007, 07:46 PM
Critical issue with VoiceCommand 1.6 &amp; Bluetooth headsets fixed. It's a real problem when you're using a Bluetooth headset and incoming calls are announced through the headset muting out the person I'm speaking to. Not to mention, the other party can hear who's calling as well. It'd be nice if it worked like VoiceCommand 1.5 where calls were announced through the device speaker and NOT the headset when you're actively using it! This issue occured on my MDA with VC 1.6 (in which I was able to uninstall and go back to 1.5) and Wing with VC 1.6 (in which I can't uninstall).

Eriq Cook
06-13-2007, 07:55 PM
Oh, a not so critical but awesome feature to add is the ability to get driving directions direclty from the Contacts app. I envision opening a Contact, going to the Menu and choosing "Get Directions to [Sub-menu: Office / Home". Since the Windows Live service is integrated into WM6, it could just use Live Maps.

andyclap
06-16-2007, 09:00 PM
My alarms/notifications always work on my 700WX. As far as I am concerned that is fixed.
I wish they were: on my Vario II, WM5 device, they've not only not fired until the device was turned on several times (same old timer notification queue problems), but at the minute they fire without showing the notification box to dismiss them! I have to change the alarm time, then soft-reset, then disable the alarm! The whole notification queue needs rewiring in the OS.

Other things:

Backup - who removed backup?!? WFT??!

Activesync - It is definitely slowly destroying contacts' details and my email archive in a variety of ways - removing the odd one here, reverting to old details there. I have input one friend's new address at least 6 times this year. What about contact groups? Why is it so hard to employ somebody who knows about synchronisation. The ability to sync with Outlook is one of the key selling points for WM, but the other phone OSs seem to be overtaking activesync in their ability to do this properly.

One handed operation - HTC Touch? ??? Why spend all that time and development on a gimmicky little today plug-in? Just make the clickable areas generally bigger throught the UI! Not rocket-science. Especially the a-z in the contacts. Make touch+drag = screen scroll rather than using scroll bars. Make scrollwheels scroll rather than tab.

Slide-out keyboard screen flip - this seems like such a hack! Half the time it still pops up the onscreen keyboard when the keyboard is open - need an OS level mecahnism for suppressing this. The other half of the time the apps just can't cope. Especially MS Reader. At the OS API level make it easy for apps to query device capabilities (i.e. screen res), receive notifications of screen size changes, and add better UI layout management. It is unaceptable for MS's own applications to fail to take this into account.

The [X]/[OK] concept - this is a mess. You need two actions - confirm and cancel. The OK button sometimes dismisses the dialogue, sometimes confirms it. There are times when it's impossible to cancel something you don't want to be doing, and you have to bring up the screen keypad and do ctrl-Q. Confirm and Cancel should always be available - easy to understand, no guessing what OK means in the current screen. That's why people liked - nay loved - the old Nokia interface.

Joypads - I have never seen a good one. The UDLR + action concept was obviously designed by somebody who'd never used a gameboy. A responsive 8way joypad that moves the selection, plus separate Confirm and a Cancel buttons (see above) is the bleeding obvious layout. For some wiered reason my current device locks the direction you press until you let go of the joypad - what nonsense is this! It's not just for games - although because games require the most fine-tuned interraction they expose the flaws in the stupid over-designed rubbish joypads we all live with.

HTML Email - You have a reusable HTML renderer in the OS! It would take 5 mins to use it from messaging (although I think we have this in WM6?).

PIE - I realise it's never going to be a fully standards compliant browser, but how about view source? Multiple windows?

WM5 Windows Media is a UI mess - it takes 8 clicks to open a song from my stoage card. I can't scale up content, it fails to scan my memory cards properly, it constantly forgets where and what I was listening to last, and it doesn't have pluggable codecs so I have to use TCPMP for video (which isn't such a bad thing, but it has bugs too).

Wifi - obviously the designers have never used wifi in a mobile device. You move it around, so you will want to change the wifi network being used. I can't beleive this is hidden away in a submenu off of wifi settings (which never need changing by the average user) - and called Network Cards! What?!?

Bluetooth. A proper stack. Let me at least send somebody else my contact details or a file without spending half an hour fiddling before giving up.

Word Mobile. Let me see embedded pictures! I can't remember the last time I saw a word doc without at least one picture in it.

Ringtones and notifications - why do they have to be in a particular folder. And why is this folder diffferent for ringtones and notifications?! Why can't I have ringtones for different contacts (or groups, oops sorry no groups) - my old nokia from last century could do this.

Who on earth though of the "My Work Network" "My Internet Connection" split? What is that rubbish? Can somebody explain what it means? I'm not going to try and work out a better scheme in this message, but it wouldn't take much to think of something that's actually usable and understandable.

General stability. It goes wrong frequently. I have to reset my device frequently. 3rd party apps frequently cause problems with core OS functionality. It's frequently embarrasing showing off my device to somebody only to have to soft-reset it to turn it on! It's frequently crap.

I'm really thinking of going back to Symbian - now that their devices are actually capable of doing most things that WM has been able to do for a while (namely multimedia), the devices are starting to surpass WM devices. WM doesn't seem to be moving forward any more - MS aren't putting enough developer resource into it.

And relax...