Newsletter

Beta Testing Done Wrong

Seth Goldstein

Jan 25, 2023 — 3 min read

My Take

Send help! I’m being held hostage by Microsoft. More specifically the Windows 11 Beta program. The betas are making my computer unstable, and that alone is infuriating, but can be expected. What’s really pissing me off is that the only way to get out of the Beta program is to wait until another release from Microsoft or format your computer. What the heck. That’s not a very user-friendly experience. What’s worse, Dell machines make it a real pain to reinstall Windows. I don’t know exactly why, but I’m having a bear of a time formatting too. So I’m being held hostage to technology and Microsoft is to blame, in my opinion. Now, I’m not clear of some responsibility. I willingly joined the beta, I agree. But it should be easy to leave the beta. This is not easy. I can hear lots of people in the distance saying go to a Macintosh or Linux machine. The problem is that I’m so far in the Windows ecosystem I really just want Windows 11 to work properly.

I know a few people who love the beta program and are having no issues. I’m looking at you Rob.

But I’m having a terrible time.

Send help!

Web Finds

Report: Google search will debut chatbot features this year
People think OpenAI is eating Google’s lunch with chatbot AI. This isn’t quite true. Google’s AI research is going strong, it’s just not public. And because of this it’s probably going to emerge much more complete than where ChatGPT is right now. That’s just my opinion, of course, we’ll see.
Twitter Updates Bookmarks UI, Counts Bookmarks as Partial Likes
I used to love Twitter. I can’t stand where it’s going. Elon is trying to make improvements while sinking the ship.
YouTube Will Provide More Context on Policy Violations with Two Coming Updates
More context is a good thing. That way users can actually know what they did wrong and remedy the situation.
LinkedIn Removes ‘Curious’ Reaction Option on Posts
I think there’s a point where a comment is more poignant than hitting the “Curious” button. Those quick reactions are really not that useful in the long run. Engagement comes from comments, in my opinion. They are much more valuable, to the humans at least.
You can’t hire ambitious people and then ask them to stop being ambitious.
Rand Fishkin is right, asking someone who is ambitious to stop is absolutely ridiculous. Employers should encourage ambition and want it in their ranks. At Goldstein Media we encourage side hustles. Ambition is not a bad thing.
The Creator Economy Is Far From Overblown
Another great post from Rand. The creator economy is alive and well and as powerful as ever. It is not to be ignored.
7 Things You Can Automate For Your Podcast Today
Joe Casabona is a podcast expert. He’s too modest to admit it, but the guy knows his stuff. Joe is also one of the friendliest people you’ll ever meet and always willing to chat and give ideas. Check out this post he did on LinkedIn.
Why Product Cannibalization Can Be A Good Thing
Kevin Indig is one of my favorite digital marketers and SEOs, his newsletter Growth Memo is top notch. His latest piece on product cannibalization is a very interesting take on the topic. Have a look and let me know your thoughts. Can cannibalization of your product be a good thing?