(suffering from google-lag here...)

[... hard boots will] be different, perhaps better and perhaps
worse. My
limited experience with riding non-groomers in hard boots tells me
that
jumping, moguls, and open powder fields should be just as good
(maybe
better) as in soft boots, while chutes and trees may be a bit
harder
than in soft boots.

I agree. I've done a lot of back-country stuff in hard boots and don't
take any prisoners in chutes or trees either, but then it's hard to
tell what's the gear and what's the rider.


[...] I have yet to see [anybody] riding down some seriously steep stuff

I don't think that says much other than that most snowboarders are
poor riders. Several extreme pro riders used to use hard boots, and I
think still do.

I'm not sure how much the design of the gear and how much marketing.
Are snowboarders as a group unable/unwilling to ride most steep/ bumpy
stuff because their gear is bad (eg they use soft boots intended for
aerial ballet moves), or is it because the marketing is all park
focused? This last is interesting because with most boarders knowing
only sideslip turns, trick skiers are blowing them away. Do we end up
with snowboarding being just sideslip-drop-sideslip, a sort of
resort-bound snow-skateboarding?


Alpine boards are a serious rush though.
Yes.

Are they a serious disadvantage in moguls/steeps?
No. It's hard to tell what's the rider and what's the gear though.