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My rants on Windows Vista have been legendary. The only reason I’ve been so vocal about it, is because I care. If I didn’t, I’d just leave it be. As someone who felt he was slighted by Windows Vista, I couldn’t stay quiet. Microsoft has lost the community. I am trying to help, in whatever way I can. For me to come out and state what I believe to be the truth caused me to be pushed away by other Windows enthusiasts. I took my lumps for well over a year, until I stated that the community as a whole should stand up and tell Microsoft what they can do to get it right.

The other day, an article was posted on Todd Bishop’s blog. I don’t agree with the class action lawsuit that has been filed, at all. However, Microsoft needs to listen. They need to take action.

A federal judge today unsealed internal Microsoft e-mails that have been used to support the plaintiffs’ case in the lawsuit over the “Windows Vista Capable” program. Snippets were previously read aloud in court, but the full messages go further to reveal extensive hand-wringing, at the highest levels of the company, over Windows Vista’s hardware and software compatibility problems after the operating system was launched.

For example, one February 2007 exchange started with an e-mail to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer from board member Jon Shirley, who explained that he upgraded one of his computers to Windows Vista only to find it was experiencing compatibility problems with two of Microsoft’s own MSN applications. Shirley wasn’t upgrading his other computer because of a lack of hardware drivers. As many early Windows Vista users know, Shirley wasn’t the only one experiencing those kinds of problems, especially in the initial months after release.

In addition to some of the previously reported excerpts — including executive Mike Nash’s complaint that compatibility problems turned his $2,100 PC into nothing more than an “email machine” — that thread led to a revealing message from Steven Sinofsky, then the newly installed Windows chief. In the message, Sinofsky offered his take on what went wrong with Windows Vista’s launch, and how the company should change its approach in the future.

This is particularly notable given Sinofsky’s public silence during the past year. It will no doubt be closely examined by people looking for clues about Microsoft’s strategy with Windows 7, the code name for Windows Vista’s successor. Read on for the full text of Sinofsky’s message.

You know, I gave as much feedback as I could. It boiled down to being a member of the community who felt that Windows Vista Ultimate was anything BUT “Ultimate”. I sincerely hope that Microsoft’s culture understands that we’ve got choices now. Whether the choice is to stay with Windows XP or switching to another Operating System entirely remains to be seen. I know there’s a new version of Windows on the horizon. Hopefully they’ll listen at this point.

I’m not asking much of Microsoft. I want them to listen to their Community. They need to value implementation over features, instead of the other way around. Listen to your users. Listen to the Community. Don’t show us something and say “Wow! Look what we did!”. Try asking us before you do it. Open your ears and minds, and find out what your Community really wants and needs. I’m not talking about the Corporate world. I’m talking about your average Home users. These people will help you build a better product if you let them. I truly hope you let them.

Listening to your Community is the only thing that will save you and your future at this point. Take heed.

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