P: The zoom does not work properly after the update.

If you disable "Use Smart Previews instead of Originals for image editing", does it still do it?

Completely understand your frustration. The reset, reinstall, update etc. routine is rarely a suggestion that you're at fault, but that there may be an issue that's easily fixed that way. It's amazing how often that works, especially with resetting preferences. Still doesn't mean it's your fault, but it's a lot quicker than dragging you through all of the debugging steps to try to find the original cause of the problem, which still might not be found. 

There are some issues that are just really horrible to try to find, because they require you to be standing on one leg, patting your head and rubbing your belly at the same time, in a specific room in your own house. Ok, silly analogy, but you get the idea.

When lots of people start reporting the same issue, it's possible to spot a common theme, but when it's just one and the engineers can't figure out how to reproduce it, it requires more troubleshooting from the user too. You can't just throw money at a problem like that, because you still won't get any closer to finding the problem. If they can reproduce the problem on their own machines, it's far far far more likely to be fixed.

Perhaps, in this case, it may be true, but when you have had so many occasions over the years, regarding all manner of software and hardware produced by vast businesses, and get this corporate head-scratching, it does tend to make a person very cynical.

I have had literally dozens and dozens of instances; from cars to cameras, phones to printers, graphic software to graphic tablets, and all have followed the same pattern.

First I describe the problem, so the response is to ask me to describe the problem. Then they take it to the next level and I'm blamed, so get asked to reset, reinstall, update, try again, etc.. After all, it must be me! Then we get this, "We can't reproduce it". Usually, the end consists of two possibilities: either the admission, "Ooh yes, you're right, there is a problem!", or "Yes, it doesn't work, but tough. You'll have to live with it.".

This is despite the large sums of money involved (sometimes thouands) and, even in the first instance, I could be waiting years for a solution.

So, forgive me for being blunt, but Adobe are a very rich organisation to which I have paid (and continue to pay) considerable money.

No one's suggesting you're the only one in the world Peter - just that they couldn't reproduce it yet (which makes it nearly impossible to fix). Sometimes this is due to a specific combination of hardware/software/drivers on your machine - and with the wide variety of hardware combinations on Windows, this is often true. Other times they're just missing a step to reproduce it. It's never intended as an insult.

Sir,

I have sent you a link to a video showing the behaviour. As I mentioned in my message, there is nothing, absolutely nothing, quite as infuriating as a large company suggesting that someone with a problem is the only one in the entire world who has suffered from it. The idea is as ludicrous as it is insulting.

We are not able to reproduce the issue.
I have sent you an e-mail offlist to understand the issue better.

Thanks,
Sunil

UPDATE!

There is another issue concerning this behaviour which I hadn't noticed immediately because I was so put off by the stuttering zoom.

Normally, you would click on the point at which you want the zoom to centre, which is fairly obvious. However, now it remains centred on the desired bit for the first part of the zoom, but when the zoom completes it centres on the whole frame, so you have to drag to the area of interest.

I just want to scream!

Yes, but smart previews are supposed to work like the full files, just not rendered with the same detail.

So you are using Smart Previews and the files this zoom issue occurs  on have smart previews?

Thanks for the help, but I do appreciate how the zoom feature should work.
In my case, it isn't doing that.

All the images are the same size, RAW files and I'm looking to zoom into 1:1. Sometimes, for a moment, they zoom out fractionally. Others they zoom in to a degree and then fully shortly afterwards.

I was wondering, for the 'zooming out' whether it was working on the reduced resolution smart preview in error, rather than the full file. I do understand that in smart preview mode I still won't get all the details, but the size should be correct.

As it is, the zoom works, but in this slow, delayed, and stuttering way. I want it fixed!