Just to add a couple of bits of detail to your post, LO. Rafale was actually help up (actually put on pause) by the French Governement due to the country's financial difficulties and political issues. It really had nothing to do with the programme itself, which also introduced three new models.
Typhoon's delays were also political, significant requirement changes post Cold War and the enormous problems created by the partner nations, mostly Germany as it went through its massive change of life.
As for what tech advances those two aircraft bought, they were huge in their day. As I have said before, every generation appears to be a greater leap forward than the last.
SSSETOWTF,
It's odd that so many of the test community during Typhoon development were singing the praises of the Typhoon cockpit, as were the members of the pilot cockpit working group - you were clearly not a member of that if you regard the result as such a disgrace.