I meant that Libre software is usually written for the people writing it, rather than for third party users, so the older developers wanted to recreate windows

I meant that Libre software is usually written for the people writing it, rather than for third party users, so the older developers wanted to recreate windows for their own use, while the current ones want to recreate MacOS for their own use. A central tenent of Libre software (and the top 4 major DEs are all Libre software) is that the user is the developer. That is, there is no barrier between the person writing the software and the person using the software - they can be one and the same and users can change/fix the software and send the improvements upstream. My hypothesis is that the most proactive developers have always built the software to function as it is most convenient for them, and during the past 10 years enough of the old guard has been replaced by newcomers whose preferences don't align with ours any more. I have very rarely observed a Libre software being written for the benefit of non-developers, rather than for the benefit of the authors - those that are, tend to be some of the highest-regarded pieces of software out there.