zdwApple randomly closes bug reports unless you "verify" the bug remains unfixed
I recognize that this is annoying from a user perspective, but I do understand it. Not all bugs are easily reproducible (and even if they are 100% reproducible for the user, it's not always so easy for the developers). Also sometimes you make a change to the code that you think might be in a related area, and so sometimes the most "efficient" thing is just to ask the user to re-test.
When I close an old bug that is not actionable, I do feel bad about it. But keeping the bug open when realistically I can't really do anything with it might be worse.
> Not all bugs are easily reproducible
Apple did not say they couldn't reproduce it. Neither did they say that they thought they fixed it. They refused to say anything except "Verify with macOS 26.4 beta 4".
> and even if they are 100% reproducible for the user, it's not always so easy for the developers
It's not easy for the user! Like I said in the blog post, I don't usually run the betas, so it would have been an ordeal to install macOS 26.4 beta 4 just to test this one bug. If anything, it's easier for Apple to test when they're developing the beta.
> the most "efficient" thing is just to ask the user to re-test.
Efficient from Apple's perspective, but grossly inefficient from the bug reporter's perspective.
> realistically I can't really do anything with it
In this case, I provided Apple with a sample Xcode project and explicit steps to reproduce. So realistically, they could have tried that.
I suspect that your underlying assumption is incorrect: I don't think Apple did anything with my bug report. This is not the first time Apple has asked me to "verify" an unfixed bug in a beta version. This seems to be a perfunctory thing they do before certain significant OS releases, clear out some older bug reports. Maybe they want to focus now on macOS 27 for WWDC and pretend that there are no outstanding issues remaining. I don't know exactly what's going through their corporate minds, but what spurred me to blog about it is that they keep doing this same shit.