Have Your Say and Shape The Future of Access

It’s alive!

We haven’t seen any signs of life from the Microsoft Access Dev Team in 4 months, but out of the blue, the Program Manager, Linda Lu Cannon posted a new Blog Post about joining the Access developer research panel.

So if you’re interest in joining a panel that she is PRing as

…you have the opportunity to help us prioritize upcoming features, share pain points, and provide your scenarios to help us improve. As a member of the research panel, you will receive invitations to participate in user research studies…Linda Lu Cannon

If this is the type of thing that potentially interests you then check out her full blog post at:

Join the Access developer research panel
As we move into FY25 planning, the Access Team invites you to participate in a survey that will help shape and influence our product evolution. Please take a…
Note!
Do note that part of the signup process requires you to digitally sign a legally binding contract with Microsoft.

Also, just because you signup does not guarantee in any way that Microsoft will actually ask you to participate.

More Questions Than Answers?
As indicated by my posting a question in the blog article, I’m a confused and concerned now.

By shifting towards such ‘research panels’ where only selected people get to participate and shape the direction taken for future development, this instantaneously invalidated years of suggestions created in UserVoice/Feedback Portal. It instantaneously invalidated people upvoting and supporting those same suggestions.

So years of posting suggestions, bugs reporting, trying to get fellow users to participate, … and in a flash, it all crumbles away and becomes entirely for nothing. Very sad.

I much prefer a public system where people can freely see what suggestions already exist, create new one and have a vote.

IMHO, private, closed methods are not the way to go if you are looking for true insight from all your users!

Clean up the Feedback Portal (which is finally happening!), make it the tool it should always have been, and listen to what people contribute/upvote!!!

I very much worry about a few people, in a punctual research panel, speaking for the masses and directing future development.