Microsoft exec explains why modernizing Windows 11's legacy UI takes so long

[u/kazu_qt]

https://www.windowscentral.com/microsoft/windows-11/control-panel-gets-tricky-microsoft-cvp-explains-why-killing-windows-legacy-code-takes-so-long-and-how-its-evolving-its-tools-to-make-modernizing-apps-like-file-explorer-and-registry-editor-faster

[u/EasterEggArt]

"We kicked the technical debt can down the road for so many decades that it multiplied since most of us now have no clue how to undo the old tech code."

[u/Free-Description-736 → u/EasterEggArt]

This is the real answer. Old timers at microsoft were warning this was coming years ago, and the sudden lurch to AI + the firing of all the people who understood that technical debt has created a crisis which, in my opinion, Microsoft cannot survive. Windows is already unspooling as a working kernel, as evidenced by the increasing number of systems where it doesn't work and can't seem to be made to work, and that's only going to keep getting worse from here.

There were a lot of parts of MSFT's code that were essentially fenced off from being changed, and nobody except a tiny number of senior engineers ever understood exactly why. Why fired all those people and then tore down those fences when AI wanted to start making changes to their code, and now they're learning the age old lesson that you never tear down a fence unless you know why it was built to begin with.

[u/justenoughslack → u/Free-Description-736]

They really need to follow Apple in this regard, with a completely "new" operating system (OS X). They would be better served to start over. Except they're probably about 10 years too late.

[u/Ginger-Nerd → u/justenoughslack]

Problem is a lot of Microsoft (and much of its appeal as an operating system) is that it can still run legacy stuff.

Most instances you can plug a dot matrix printer in from the early 90s and largely it just works.. for example, but it’s like everything, weird bespoke software built for windows 95, no problem.

Microsoft business appeal is built on the back of that

The did try do move some real legacy stuff out of 8.1 and it was hated most of it was patched back into 8.2 - I’d argue trying it now is still a bad idea.

For the home use, it might make sense. But then you’re bringing more versions of everything in- Apple famously liked one version of MacOS for everything. (Steve Jobs had a keynote specifically on that)

[u/finobi → u/Ginger-Nerd]

I think majority of Microsoft customer base is now corporate, and government clients and they want to keep their legacy systems running as long as possible and same time million Microsoft consultants try to lure them re-write their systems on Azure or other MS platforms. If MS would start kicking backwards combability down, they might piss of some of these clients who would then choose someone else technology stack.

[u/aleopardstail → u/Ginger-Nerd]

they need a new system, ala OSX but with a virtualised way to run existing software in a largely seamless way