Who'd have thought that 2021 would be the year of Linux on the desktop. Not because it has gradually improved (it has), but because the alternative has declined so much.
In fact I welcome my evil Microsoft overlord any day before I use something from Google. I see MS as the lesser of two evils.
Microsoft is doing it too:
https://www.pcworld.com/article/423165/how-to-turn-off-windo...
There's still Linux.
And if you really need offline editing, you can still have all the pros of Linux + office if you install a Windows VM escape hatch just for Word.
The distribution fragmentation... I'm expected to install flavour X or Y of Linux not actually knowing before I start that my hardware even supports it? Brain = explode.
Joining a community (Linux) that stomps all over people that have a dissenting view (I actually like Windows - have done since I started using it in 1990) is philosophically not a community I want part of (Stallman is an exception I have a lot of time and respect for).
A VM adds complexity - why would I do that when native Windows is pain-free and just works?
And no, I don't "need" offline editing, I just want it. After all the cloud is a computer just like mine - that happens to belong to someone else. The cloud introduces a risk of data theft and complete data loss. And yes, probability is low, but impact and exposure are both very VERY high. I don't run that risk at all using my own hardware.