ETA on Advanced Class change?

And for some, rerolling is fine. Even preferred. But for other people, they would rather drop some real money to dodge the reroll. How is that a bad thing?

As I said before, they don't really use the basic skills. They have them, but are rarely used (unless you are counting the free shot or focus builder strike). Majority of skills you use are skills of your advanced class and your spec.

And it affects the game as a whole in much more than just switching weapons. Say I switch from healing sage to tank shadow. I need completely new set of gear (unlike switching from healing sage to dps sage, where my equipment remains somewhat usable). This could lead to people demanding that all stats are merged into one big pool so that they do not have to get new gear for their switching, and so on and so on (I believe it is called salami method)

Originally, btw, bw fully intended to allow ac swapping.

Actually, originally BW did NOT intend to allow class (AC) changing. During beta, they did talk about changing their minds and allowing class (AC) changing, but ultimately decided to keep the choice of AC PERMANENT. This decision not to allow class (AC) changing was due to the overwhelming feedback from players.

SPEC IS NOT A CLASS.

Why are you incapable of understanding this? Specs are not designed to be classes, rarely if ever are they designed and presented as unique classes....they are designed as SPECS, in order to support roles.

Are you disputing the very definition of spec and role? Somehow spec is now class?

SPECS play fundamentally different in almost all games that have specs. That does NOT make them individual classes, and the contention that a spec is a class is rather foolish IMO.

The problem is bad design, compounded by ridiculous arguments that justify bad design.

Correct me if I am wrong, but every sorcerer SPEC is RANGED. Yes, they may play a little differently, but every one is RANGED. Assassins SPECS are all MELEE.

How does a player new to WoW know how the class he chooses at CREATION will play at level cap? Can he cry "I didn't know it would be like this. WAH! WAH! WAH!" and change his class? No, he cannot. He must level a new character of the new class he wishes to play.

That is exactly how a player can play a new class in this game. One simply has to level that new class.

I see them as distinctly different classes within a story line, while you may see them as merely an unchangeable spec.

Slippery slope is a argument fallacy. Allowing a person to breath is a slippery slope because they could use that breath to stay alive, and then use their life to kill innocent people. See? Slippery slope. Of course, my example is total bull. That's what a slippery slope is. Bull. Just because BW lets us swap ACs doesn't mean they have to let us buy level 55 toons, or buy BiS gear.

As for your gear swap thing...honestly, who cares? If there was a vendor that let you swap mods and CC for a new mod of the same level and quality, what do I care if you want to dump a bunch of cash on this game and change your dps into a tank or vice versa? Granted, I play for the PvP, so gear grind is a means to an end (and even then, an obnoxious one that needs to be abolished), not the end itself. For PvE, you play to just get the gear, so a gear shortcut essentially cuts out how much PvE endgame you do.

Which is another distinction. AC swap lets people skip past the leveling portion. Not the end game. And it doesn't let someone skip the leveling on a story line they've never done. Only let's them skip the leveling on content they've already run.

And if you're real concern is that someone who has a bunch of money (and is willing to waste it) has an easier go of it than those without...I mean, that's real life, isn't it? And this is a product that a for-profit company is selling. MMO communities are one of the more unique consumers out there. They have the notion that, even though you pay for your product, you should have to work to get satisfaction out of it. This isn't a life, and it isn't a job. It's a game. Why shouldn't some conveniences and shortcuts exist for those who are willing to pay for it?

I completely disagree with your statement that beta had overwhelming feedback from the players that focused one way or the other. I recall extremely passionate and divided feedback in beta, much as can be seen in this thread and others in the past that have been similar, but player feedback was not and has never been united on this topic. If it was, this thread would not be as long as it is.