Maybe I'm just getting old, but Windows XP was the last version of Windows where usability and UI consistency seemed to be central to the design.
The menu bar was in the same place in every application. Short-cuts were consistent between apps. I didn't have to contend with four different version of the file browser to open a file, or "Show more options" on right-click to get a non-idiot-proof context menu. Icons were high contrast, there were text descriptions and tools tips (instead of cryptic grey-on-grey icons), short-cut combinations were actually included in the menus, and almost every application had a help file!
The menu bar was in the same place in every application. Short-cuts were consistent between apps. I didn't have to contend with four different version of the file browser to open a file, or "Show more options" on right-click to get a non-idiot-proof context menu. Icons were high contrast, there were text descriptions and tools tips (instead of cryptic grey-on-grey icons), short-cut combinations were actually included in the menus, and almost every application had a help file!
Can we go back to that, please?