[mholm]

Not OP, but I've got a friend of a friend in the Windows org that backs this up. Most engineers are teamed up by manufacturers. HP team, Lenovo team, etc. These are the primary drivers of feature development. If it won't sell grandma another $500 HP laptop, they're not interested.

[DoctorDabadedoo]

It's B2B/Enterprise in the driver's seat to keep revenue coming. Usability and polishing of the products is locked in the trunk of the car.

source: been there.

[jm4]

Interesting. Sounds not too much unlike Linux.