Windows Insider Dev Channel flies again as very flighty Canary Channel

Microsoft has created a fourth channel for test versions of its Windows operating system and recommended Windows Insiders don't use it – even though they'll be migrated to it by default. Announced on Monday, the Canary Channel is going to be "the place to preview platform changes that require longer lead time before getting …

[navarac]

Cheap-Skate Lip-Service

All was well when the Insiders programme started, but this is all cheap-skate lip-service now-a-days. After the way Win 11 was dumped on us without any intro in the Insider Builds, they'll do want they want anyway. I gave up when they started A/B testing a couple of years ago. Why bother installing new builds when you were not getting the "bits"? Insiders are being taken as fools these days.

[Anonymous Coward]

The Canary channel is a channel whose specifications change from time to time, so it will not serve as a place to try out features that need to be tested over a long period of time.

[david 12]

I was on Canary Channel for Edge, and was given an incompatible update. That they knew was not compatible with my OS, that they had announced was not compatible. That they were warning people was not compatible.

[Mike 137]

Outsourcing?

'... the possibility of "major issues that could result in not being able to use your PC correctly or even in some rare cases require you to reinstall Windows" '

Why release it at all then? Oh, I forgot -- the user is the test bed now.

[FIA]

Re: Outsourcing?

Why release it at all then? Oh, I forgot -- the user is the test bed now.

The users that have signed up to test things are the test bed, yes.

Problem is many people sign up to get first looks at the 'cool new stuff', but that's not what this is for. It's for testing windows, hence features that don't get released, A/B testing, etc. (Many people seem happy to do this for free, so why wouldn't MS take advantage of a much wider test pool?)

If you want Microsofts usual level of bug free stability* then run a release version. I mean I find the new stuff interesting, but would never run an insider build as my daily driver.

_{* did you see what I did there....}

[yetanotheraoc]

shameless

Canary Release is a well known implementation of the Testing In Production anti-pattern. Reading the glowing web reports is like meeting a sociopath who claims their personality flaws are actually virtues, because "results".

[David 132]

Re: shameless

Why do I suddenly have the Portal theme-song running through my head?

“We do what we must, because we can.

For the good of all of us,

Except the ones who are dead…”

[FIA]

Re: shameless

Who in their right mind is testing this in production?

[TimMaher]

Re: Who.

Microsoft?

[Charlie van Becelaere]

Re: Who.

I think you missed the "right minds" part of the question.