The main reason I don't buy what you're saying is that no other widely-liked open source software project suffers from this sort of silence from "satisfied" use

The main reason I don't buy what you're saying is that no other widely-liked open source software project suffers from this sort of silence from "satisfied" users. I often hear and see people advocating the use of KDE and Xfce, for example, even in discussion that isn't directly related to them. It isn't isolated to desktop environments, either. People who are happy with Linux Mint, for instance, are very willing to express their like in public. In general, highly satisfied users will openly say good things about the application, project, distribution or system that they enjoy using. But we don't see that spontaneous expression of enjoyment when it comes to GNOME 3. In fact, the only time I ever see people claim to like it is when somebody says or posts something about how GNOME 3 is generally disliked by most. There are always two or three people who'll say that they like it. However, their number always pales in comparison to the far greater number of people in the same discussion who express dislike or outright disgust for GNOME 3. I think the fact is that GNOME 3 is widely hated. That doesn't mean that there aren't a few token users who do enjoy it. But given the significant backlash toward it, the high degree of negativity whenever it's discussed, and the lack of traction it has gained so far, I think it's pretty safe to say that it isn't seen in a good light.