The box said 'Requires Win 95, NT or better'. So I installed Linux

Yes, it is true... I've just switched loyalties to Linux! I'm now using the Ubuntu 7.10 64 bit edition, and from my initial experiences, I'm just loving it! Especially, the graphics part, which IMHO (in my humble opinion ;)) is way beyond what Windows Vista has to offer. The nVidia GeForce 6150 Graphics card which was lying unutilized all this while (yep, I'm not a great gaming enthusiast), suddenly sprang to life and the snazzy effects are cool, to say the least. Well, there were teething troubles in getting up my notebook to full functionality, so to speak. But they were just that - teething troubles. And thanks to the huge Ubuntu community out there, getting them sorted out was no sweat. That's the best part about using Linux. There's a whole bunch of guys out there, who've likely faced the same problem that you're facing right now, and you'll find the answer on a forum. You just have to google on your problem, and Voila! And oh, the ubuntu official forums are there, too. So getting my Wireless connection up and running, and fixing the sound issue (no sound) was done in a matter of an hour or two (well, the sound card issue was vexed).
The move from Windows was prompted by an itch, really. An itch to do something different, to just experience a different OS for a while (OK, OK, I'm a geek ;)). And at not having to pay through your nose for softwares, and updates - who doesn't like free stuff?! And real quality free stuff!! The installation itself was pretty easy. I've worked on Linux boxes quite extensively during my grad student days at IIT, Bombay, and so Linux installations were nothing new. In fact, Linux itself was nothing new. And there was a time when I was more comfortable at command lines than Windows-based apps (for one, it really helps on a notebook, when you don't use a mouse). But installing Ubuntu from the disc proved nothing at all like installing that Linux distro I'd installed on my machine during my IIT days. No manual partitioning, no setting up /boot, /home, /swap; no being prompted for LILO or Grub. Just a glide through the set-up process where you're asked for the place settings and a couple of administrative things. The whole set-up was done within half an hour, and I was ready to go! Next followed setting up the Internet connection (the LAN card was configured correctly, so this was smooth), and getting help on setting up the Wireless connection. And fixing the sound issue. This far the UI,while being on par with Windows, was pretty ordinary after all. Then I installed the restricted firmware for the nVidia Graphics card, and boy! The snazzy effects while switching between apps, opening or closing a terminal, switching workspaces... A whole lot of cool stuff! Then downloaded the security updates from the Ubuntu site, and there I was ready to go.
I've been using Ubuntu for the last couple of days, and the experience has been perfect. In fact, it does all the things Windows does, and more! So unlike the Linux distro that I'd used in IIT-B, I don't have to mount and unmount the CD-ROM and USB drives - they're done by the system. Even though I'm comfortable with that part, that was a pleasant surprise (yep, I hadn't quite been in touch with the evolution of Linux the last couple of years). At the same time, the command line just puts a lot of power at your fingertips (literally and figuratively). I don't think I'd be moving back to Windows any time soon. So here's to Linux!
Cheers!!