In reply to mypyrex:
Been to the Dolomites in both winter and summer and to be honest I don't think the pistes there look too bad. Ok it may have a lot to do with the fact that there is a much lower concentration of pistes, and they tend to follow natural features, but my memory is that most of them look like meadows, quite lush and green, at least by September. Obviously grass that's been under snow for 5 months doesn't look great, and piste bashers and snow making facilities keep the snow on them for longer.
And maybe it helps that the Dolomites is more of all year round venue than many of the French ski meccas, although the rise of mountain biking means the machinery is getting more use now.
As to when I'm skiing, I do love getting away from the machinery, either by going off-piste or by ski-mountaineering (only done one day, but really ought to do more). But I guess I generally accept the machinery as a cost associated with getting into stunning locations. There are still vast areas of the alps, and even more so in the rockies, that haven't been turned into our playgrounds. Of course getting to these areas is hard - if it wasn't, they would also be affected by tourism. Cest la vie