When you've completed the game, you can start a new playthrough with developer commentary enabled. If you haven't beaten the game, be warned that some commentary may spoil puzzle solutions.
In this chamber, you'll find a commentary node from:
Jeep Barnett, programmer
Where is the node?
In the air above the moving platform's starting position. You don't need to be on top of the platform to activate it - just look at it and press the 'use' / grab key.
A screenshot of the node's location is provided beneath its transcript.
Node transcript
[Jeep Barnett] Originally, these scaffolds ran on electrified tracks. But, crafty playtesters would hop along the rails to the exit, bypassing the puzzle entirely. We tried to solve this by killing players as soon as they touched the rails. That solution ended up being too much of an over correction, as even skilled playtesters were getting frustrated by these one-hit kills, in the more complex puzzles later in the game. Making the scaffolds run along immaterial beams of light solved both problems.
Guide help
This is the low-spoiler guide for "Developer Commentary for Chamber 07" puzzle in Portal. Unlike in normal walkthrough, you get gradual hints on how to solve the puzzle. Click the big button below to see your first hint. If the hint contains a spoiler, you will be warned about it before clicking.
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