The Store is the beating heart of Windows 10, without it we may as well be living in the Windows XP age.
However, the web is now alive with complaints that the Store isn’t up to the job. Particularly when it comes to searching for apps.
These aren’t from users, who are basically at the bottom end of the food chain when it comes to apps. More worryingly, it comes from the app developers whose life blood is the money they earn from their products.
And, if no one can find those apps, then the developers won’t make any money, and they will quit developing Windows 10 apps, resulting in the whole system failing.
Why is it so difficult for users to discover apps? Apparently, unless you know the name of the app, according to this developer post, then you won’t be able to find it.
This is just one example of the issue springing up, there are more on Windows developer forums and probably even more about to spring up.
The issue is not a problem if your new app is Dropbox and everyone knows the name, but it is a major problem for niche developers.
Searching on key terms, such as what the app does or relates to, just doesn’t seem to work. While that post is the opinion of just one coder, there are many similar stories in the developer forums.
Microsoft to the Store Rescue?
At this point, you might think that Microsoft should be stepping in with a megaphone and making calming overtures. It should be saying, “we’ll get this sorted.”
However, the response to these developers is, there’s nothing we can do! Specifically:
“Please note that we do not control or guarantee the way an app is found within the store. There have been some changes made to the search algorithms and […] we have no impact on how apps are found.“
With that sort of response, no wonder developers are feeling let down and look at going to other ecosystems. And the developer in this story creates 3D graphics engines, not just rip-off games or bloatware.
The one benefit of a smaller store like Windows 10 is that there’s less competition, so developers can earn more than they would from the cramped iOS or Android store.
But, again, if no one can find the apps, then that advantage of the smaller user base goes out of the windows.
As an analogy, consider the PlayStation Vita, Sony’s five year handheld gaming system. It still has many smaller developers working at games or ports for it. due to the less competitive store and the loyal fans.
The Fix is in Plain SightSomehow Microsoft is missing the key to a successful store. It either perceives itself as too big to bother with smaller developers, or has a management problem in how the store operates.
Either way, it needs to fix it. Or, if there is no real problem, it needs to make the right overtures to developers to assure them that things are okay.
Blunt denials won’t help anyone, and Microsoft’s current stance will see more critical news pieces keep coming, as more developers speak out.
Even if there is no major problem, a batch of stories taking the vitriolic approach on the issue will only dissuade potential developers from signing up.
So, for all the good work Microsoft is doing getting iOS apps on Windows 10 via Project Islandwood, it is shooting itself in both feet with the delayed Android project and this poor response to a search issue.
Sony had evangelists working with and courting developers to get apps on the PS Vita, Microsoft presumably is trying the same for Windows 10 apps, but the whole Store system has to work together, or it won’t work at all.
As for us users, let us know if you’ve had trouble finding an app on the store, or what you think of the overall search experience.
source:windows10update
