Because supporting the "long tail" is basically Microsoft Windows's entire selling point.
Everything works with Windows. I can run Linux software on Windows. I can run run greenfield web applications on Windows (the new Edge is being built for this purpose, but even Chrome for Windows was satisfactory, as long as it's easy to install). I can run old web applications on Windows. I can run old win32 applications on Windows, even stuff using emulated 16-bit APIs.
About the only thing you can't run on Windows is XCode. I wonder how big of a bribe Microsoft has tried to propose to Apple to get XCode for Windows, because developing iPhone applications is an enormous gap in Microsoft's moat.
The locked-down RT tablets were a horrible blot on an otherwise great brand. "Everything works with Windows" is a terrific selling point.
> About the only thing you can't run on Windows is XCode. I wonder how big of a bribe Microsoft has tried to propose to Apple to get XCode for Windows, because developing iPhone applications is an enormous gap in Microsoft's moat.
Because this is a fun tangent, it's part of the reason Azure DevOps has one of the largest collections of macOS machines in any cloud, and I'm sure it is mostly used for building iOS apps. The number of tools Microsoft has built or acquihired to Develop/CI/CD iOS apps is quite high counting the various versions of App Center (and its predecessor HockeyApp), Xamarin, etc.
Everything works with Windows. I can run Linux software on Windows. I can run run greenfield web applications on Windows (the new Edge is being built for this purpose, but even Chrome for Windows was satisfactory, as long as it's easy to install). I can run old web applications on Windows. I can run old win32 applications on Windows, even stuff using emulated 16-bit APIs.
About the only thing you can't run on Windows is XCode. I wonder how big of a bribe Microsoft has tried to propose to Apple to get XCode for Windows, because developing iPhone applications is an enormous gap in Microsoft's moat.
The locked-down RT tablets were a horrible blot on an otherwise great brand. "Everything works with Windows" is a terrific selling point.