Comment It's the lack of change for change's sake (Score 1) 1880
The reason I have come to prefer Windows over Linux (and I gave Linux a fair shake, I think) is the relatively stability you have with Windows. With Linux you can run a stable/LTS distro and not have to change your UI for a few years, but you're stuck with old applications that don't have cutting edge features and aren't well maintained. The other option is to go with the bleeding edge, but then you have to deal with buggy applications, and the bizarre and capricious design choices that UI designers make. The Linux desktop environment world needs to learn that change for change's sake isn't good. Windows has had some of that, but someone moving from the first version of Windows 95 to Windows 7 would find the UI very familiar and wouldn't have any major issues with the transition. On the flip side, with each different version of Ubuntu it seemed like I needed to relearn basic things like what the window would do when I clicked on what I thought was the minimize button, which side of the window the close button would be on...you get the picture. I know I could change it all back to what I was used to, but you know what? It's just not worth my time to fuss with that. A mediocre interface that I'm familiar and skilled with is better than a great interface that I need to relearn every six months because someone thought they found a way to make it even greater! My one big fear is that with Windows 8, Microsoft is jumping on the bandwagon of fucking around with the UI in radical ways. If they make me relearn everything to use the OS, then I might just jump ship, because if I'm putting that much effort into learning something new, why not try something really new? I'm hoping, though, that I can stick with Windows 7 (which I'm very, very happy with) for at least a few more years, and that Windows 8 will have some kind of fallback mode that allows the application of a Windows 7 UI.