A similar issue is for the commodity hardware handed out to developers. The desktop setup gets standardized to the lowest common denominator, managers/IT do no

A similar issue is for the commodity hardware handed out to developers. The desktop setup gets standardized to the lowest common denominator, managers/IT do not get the argument that saving 1k on a developer's desk setup is not good business practice. I get the same kind of hardware as a developer/researcher than a secretary, some low-end lenovo laptop with a single standard sized screen, running the same IT-provided windows image with performance-crippling endpoint and scanner software. All my development happens through a VM which connects to a remote server, via ssh/emacs tramp. Of course this invites the argument 'you are using your desktop as a terminal anyway, why do you need something more powerful'.