that sounds more of a problem with all the random apps you install than being a "windows" issue. microsoft can take steps to mitigate it (eg. by making hiding system tray icons by default), but calling it a "poor UI choice" on their part doesn't make much sense. it's like blaming firefox for allowing sites with annoying banners and not having adblocker by default.
> Am I supposed to practice driver minimalism to prevent a slew of tray icons from occupying my screen?
The taskbar icons are added by programs that are running. Disabling autorun for them prevents them from starting, and therefore the icons from showing up. I'd say 90% of the time disabling autorun for the companion program doesn't break any functionality.
