DId anyone else get the sense that this article was written in a very condescendingly apologetic manner? As in, look we're sorry, but this is the way it is and here is why we feel it is better for you. I suppose it could be interpreted in a number of different ways, but clearly, the author had a distinct distaste for many of the changes having been made recently in the Windows GUI. I cite the "cheesy and dated" reference to Aero for one.
In the past I have sarcastically made many references to what I perceived Microsofts manner of developing their OS. Specifically, I have stated that judging from results, it would appear that they assembled a group of people, -those who after being polled with regard to their previous experience with computers were believed to have virtually none- gave them a specific task to accomplish and then observed their path in trying to complete it and used that as a model to build their next OS. Again, while I made the remarks in a sarcastic manner, this article virtually proves that is exactly what they do. sigh

Moving on over to my Mac, refamiliarizing myself with Linux and leaving Redmond behind. Though not easier to use than Windows 7, I find them far easier to use than Windows 8. As for the capabilities and shortcomings of the different operating systems when compared with each other, one only need observe a user with a familiar understanding of the Unix command line to see how far Windows falls short in a vast universe of possibilities.