kasia in a nutshell

Of course without going open source..

In this article...

The MVP initiative will be a big part of Microsoft's efforts to promote a sense of "community" among users and developers, connecting its own product developers with the users most in touch with product issues.

It's a good start.. but you will not create a sense of community by being elitist.. "Yes, you can see our code, but only if we deem you worthy" is not going to cut it. The reason why the open source community is as tightly knit as it is lies in the idea that everyone is important.. Everyone has something they're good at and can contribute.. even if it is only a comment on the layout of a user interface.

This isn't going to help Microsoft develop a sense of community.. the users they are targeting already are deeply involved in 'all things M$' otherwise they would never gain the 'coveted' (I say this very loosely) title of a 'MVP'.

Once again, Microsoft is copying something they don't understand..

I would give them credit for at least attempting to be more open, but I cannot do that with a clear conscience.. I can see the business thinking behind this, and it's not to benefit the users.

Edit: Derrick has a pretty good commentary on this. (via inluminent)