Microsoft Says It Will Release Two Feature Updates Per Year For Windows 10, Office (petri.com)

Microsoft is making a few changes to how it will service Windows, Office 365 ProPlus and System Center Configuration Manager. From a report: Announced today, Microsoft will be releasing two feature updates a year for Windows 10 in March in September and with each release, System Center Configuration Manager will support this new aligned update model for Office 365 ProPlus and Windows 10, making both easier to deploy and keep up to date. This is a big change for Microsoft as Windows will now be on a more predictable pattern for major updates and by aligning it with Office 365 Pro Plus, this should make these two platforms easier to service from an IT Pro perspective. The big news here is also that Microsoft is announcing when Redstone 3 is targeted for release. The company is looking at a September release window but it is worth pointing out that they traditionally release the month after the code is completed.

Comments

Better Reliability?

[freeze128]

I wonder if this is to help users who don't know what they're doing. You know, the kind that click on any link that appears on their screen, install any software no matter what kind of crap it is, and generally don't maintain their systems properly. When they have reliability problems, they call Microsoft for support, and the support agent usually just says "Reinstall the OS". Well, with these feature updates effectively doing a reinstall twice a year, that might help cut down on those calls.

Don't Want 'Em

[WheezyJoe]

Since 2013, all I wanted from Office and Windows was bug-fixes. Instead, their new "features" almost always amounted to taking some useful feature away, like how the Ribbon took away menus and truly customizable toolbars, like how the Start screen took away the Start menu in Windows 8 (ok, they fixed that, sort of), like how Settings continues to rob from the Control Panel with lesser capability, all messing up years of reliable workflow.

but the bugs remain. and File Explorer still doesn't have tabs. For what? 3-D in Microsoft Paint? There's plenty of that around already. Just fix bugs, Microsoft. Fix the damn bugs.

Good move on their part

[ErichTheRed]

One of the things that "IT Pros" as Microsoft calls us have been complaining about is the unpredictable nature of updates to Windows 10 and Office. It sounds like this is a nod to the fact that not everyone is using cutting-edge software that updates at the same pace, or using common consumer applications. Corporate IT is still very different from consumer IT. Most places have started modernizing, but the reality is that big companies aren't ever going to be going at the same pace as web startups delivering a consumer phone app.

Large companies and niche users of Windows still need to deal with compatibility problems, and knowing that Microsoft isn't going to change the way the OS works randomly from month to month gives IT groups time to test applications. You might say that only LUDDITES use desktop software and that everyone is using Apps! But, even though Apps! are becoming more prevalent, companies aren't ditching every single desktop application. Some have been running for ages and don't really need Appifying, or require significant costs to Appify. Before Windows 10, Windows was all about backward compatibility and a stable platform. That changed as they were chasing the mobile phone market, but maybe they're seeing that they have to cater both the consumer and corporate user now.

If Microsoft really plans to not make money on client OS licensing for upgraded versions anymore, maybe this is also an attempt to rein in the constant stream of new feature development they must be doing. Adding features just for fun at a rapid pace is a recipe for security vulnerabilities...developers don't want to be bothered with writing something secure when something functional will do.