I've primarily been a .NET Developer (a few stints using Java/Python) since I finished college when the original .NET first RTM'd (2001). I think today's Microsoft and the Microsoft of 20 years ago are very different. Make no mistake about it, they're still interested in making money first, but their strategy has changed (it had to.) I think that old reputation haunts them (and .NET) It's too bad, because it really is a great cross-platform framework (at least on the server side.) I will often try other languages/frameworks for my side projects and I always go back to .NET. Maybe it's because of familiarity or because I'm obviously more productive with it than Java/JS/TS/Go/Rust/Elixir/Python/etc.