You know, the original NG/MCE betas had a "follow link" button (you can see a screenshot of the original layout at http://services.newsgator.com/images/tour_ngmce5.gif).

We removed this button after some discussions with Microsoft about the overall user experience; the issue is, 99.99% of the time, the "follow link" button would lead to a "normal" (2') web page.  On many displays (especially older NTSC non-HD displays), the resultant page wouldn't even be readable from a typical usage distance.  This ends up being an unacceptable user experience, so we removed the button.

If the publisher has a 10' experience that we can link to from a particular article, we have the ability to add the button back in per-feed.

I can see where MS is coming from.  They really worked hard to put together a simple front end.  However, I think they have gone too far in my opinion.  If they are passionate about removing the link why not make it a settings option (high end visual, low end visual)?  Maybe even autodetect.  What is wrong with a scaleable user experience?  It seems kind of like developing a porsche and then selling it with a 55 mph  governor because their research indicates that many people don't drive very fast. 

Morevover, how many users have an HTPC, broadband connection, gator subscription, Windows Media Center and are running it on a 32" CRT?  I am no expert  but I think MS may be misunderstanidng the market.  It seems to me that they have worked hard to create a user experience that could be enjoyed by anyone regardless of what equipment they have at home  to access the broader low-tech market, but I think they may risk losing, or frustrating, high-tech enthusiasts who are more likely to create the initial excitement about your product. 

Perhaps I am in the minority, but what turned me on to your product was that your program could filter and push down the info *I want* and deliver it to my tv without ads or having to log into a content provider.  Most of the rss feeds are short one sentence blurbs that typically give me barely enough info to decide if I want to learn more.  I think this is fine though if I can easily log into to get the full story.  I may look at them and conclude that nothing interesting has happened.  What I don't like is that if I do find something then have to close mc, open my browser,and then go out and search for the info myself.   When I am done I have to reverse to process.  This seems to undermine the potential efficiency this product could provide to me.  Ultimately, I feel that I haven't gained much. 

I do like the self-entered search feature.  This is a nice idea. I enteredmy company's name?  Does this feature accept boolean logic operators?

Thanks.