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Microsoft's decision in February to strip an identifier used for decades from some Windows update release notes continues to draw the ire of customers.

Company announced on its Windows IT Pro blog that it would no longer include the KB identifier — KB for Knowledge Base — in the URLs of all online release notes associated with Windows update release details. The KB identifiers have been used by Microsoft for several decades to pinpoint individual bug fixes and guide customers to the appropriate documentation.

One of the primary ways that many find release notes is through the use of a KB identifier (KBID)," Christine Ahonen, a program manager at Microsoft, wrote in the post to the Windows IT Pro blog. "We use a unique identifier for each Windows update. Once a KBID is created, it is then used to identify the update throughout the release process, including documentation."

"Why can't you just add it (the KD identifier) to the URL?" asked Vadim Sterkin in a comment. "You've got a title and a huge GUID there already. KBID isn't an overhead. But no, you make us view or parse the source. Your approach doesn't make sense, but you don't really bother to explain it."

"Hold the phone. Enough. Don't mess with my KB numbers," wrote Susan Bradley in another comment. (Bradley, who publishes the Windows tip newsletter AskWoody.com, also contributes to Computerworld as the Microsoft Patch Lady columnist.) This is how we all 'speak' in terms of patches, patch management, etc.

"Clearly this is making it easier for you but not for us. You remember us? Your customers? The ones you should be making happy? If it is a KB, then it needs to have a KB in the URL. Period."