If you are really using Linux, you know Linux has its own problems, many of them are as annoying as the ones in win98.

- Apache runs on Windows
- Perl runs on Windows
- PHP runs on Windows
- MySQL runs on Windows

"-because I won't spend a couple hundred on an OS if I don't have to."
Windows price is not a couple hundrend! It is not even a hundrend if you buy the upgrade which will be the case for you. First you need to learn the numbers.

Mozilla works on windows.

Mozilla works on Windows.

Even bluefish will work on windows, through cygwin, though I would say you would have a point there if you just said you are addicted to KDE.

"- because I love having 12 workspaces active, with Galeon in one Evolution in another, the Gimp elsewhere, OpenOffice.org in another, Frozen bubble in another, Xmms running elswhere etc."
Ok, this is the only good point you have here, not a strong one, but the only one.

"-because I need to replicate my websites on my laptop, where I run Linux/Apache/MySQL/PHP and Perl and I can edit my sites off line when I want"
As I said you can all do these on windows without any problem, very naturally.

"- because nobody at work has noticed that I use OpenOffice.org instead of MSOffice, that I use Evolution instead of MS Outlook and have been for a couple years now. Sure I've pointed it out, but it fits right in."
Cool, you replaced one app with another that does the same thing or actually less but still sort of the same. Also Openoffice works on windows too. Also Evolution has a commercial part which you have to buy it, the retail price is a couple of hundrend.

"In short Windows does not meet what I need for my desktop and Laptop."
In short you demonstrated us why it is totally pointless to replace windows with linux, unless you want to play politics.

"So why pay for it when my needs can be met free?"
You said you are using evolution which is not free. You also omit all the problems you have to solve when you use linux. Also you don't even pay for windows. Try buying a laptop with linux that costs less than a laptop with windows. Windows is not an issue on the price and quality of the laptop at all. Dell offers the cheapest laptops out there, and the price doesn't change. Almost all linux laptops cost more. I once searched for it and I clearly saw that even on desktop windows has no effect on the cost.

Why should people migrate to Linux mono culture and why should people play politics with their computer decisions.

"It will help everybody, even those who stay with Windows."
No, it will hurt people. It will cost time, money and resources. People will get frustrated just to be able to do things that they were already able to do on windows. Also Linux security is not as good as windows, linux machines are getting hacked all the time. This will increase by increasing Linux mono culture.

"What you should'nt do is stay with Windows simply because you think it would be politics to try Linux!"
Well your own article just proves that it is really politics after all. You don't mention the problems associated with Linux and Linux mono culture. You just omit them. So we should stay with windows until Linux become as good as windows. Of course, people will use Linux as a hobby os and will improve them as they did so far. Since GPL prevents big companies to pour millions of dollars into research for a better desktop Linux, since they can't profit from giving away the code, Linux's success depends on people like you. You have to become a developer and start developing some real code, not php type of stuff, some serious stuff, like APIs, new x-window, new window managers, user interfaces, hand-written recognition, voice recognition, new window widgets, maybe new programming languages like C#, etc... After these come here and tell us to switch to Linux because you made Linux really as good as Windows and that you gave away all your effort for free. Then we will consider your proposition and will treat you seriously and your rant for windows will be also taken seriously.