Pet Peeve: Very Poor MS Online Help

vent

My subject line was a bit more graphic but I changed it to be more
civil.

I can't help it though, I feel it welling up inside me...

MICROSOFT ONLINE HELP SUCKS !!!

I feel a little better now.

Seriously...

I don't know when it started, but once upon a time a nice Windows Help
or .chm help file enabled very quick searching by content, index, or
keyword search.

Then Microsoft jumped on the web bandwagon too far. Now, when I enter
a search term, it goes out to the Internet and brings back entries
that often don't relate very well for what I am searching for, and the
most obvious topics often don't even show up in the search.

Does Microsoft even test its searches? Did they ever do parallel
testing with their old search methods and their new to see how
effective the new way is?

To answer another post, I did a search about how to turn off Instant
Search in Outlook 2007. It wasn't a blip in MS's own search results.
I had to use Google to find the answer to a MS Outlook help question.

The effects of the MS monopoly, I think, are showing up in its
products. MS doesn't even follow good user interface guidelines
anymore. Case in point: Internet Explorer 7. It is a joke. It is
non-intuitive. It is not flexible -- no moving of controls around on
toolbars.

What the he** is happening to MS's products? Toolbar customization
gone from Word, Excel, ..... At least give us ribbons that we can
modify, or have a ribbon mode for basic users and a toolbar mode for
advanced users consistent with how things were done in priof versions.

/vent