I felt well-treated by Microsoft. MSDN Library was an invaluable developer resource; Microsoft was open about what it were doing, giving out betas of Windows XP (or Whistler, as it then was) to all and sundry, and it felt like they knew what they were doing. The company had a roadmap of Whistler and Blackcomb; it had a plan.
This was attractive to someone who programmed for a living. Developers felt valued, like the company cared about them. I enjoy programming, and I enjoy writing software. I did then; I do now. So for me, this is really a key piece of what a platform has to offer.
