before i start i hope with thread is in the general forum and not other forums.

Why do you prefer linux over windows i think they are both fantasic, although linux is cheaper and more reliable.

Personally, I don't like to support a company like M$. They have done some good for computing but bullying your way into a market is not the best for everyone else.

I like Linux not because it is cheap, although I do like the stability part though, but because the people that work on it are really good people that do it because they like it. They take pride, and they should, in what they do. Mistakes, sure, but they fix them and don't try to blame someone else for the problem or call it a "feature".

My 2c worth. You asked for it sort of anyway.

Later

Things I hate about Windows:

1. Windows XP especially babies you through everything. By default, it gives you the infamous Playskool interface, hides useful stuff from the user, and in general treats the user like a total idiot.

2. Digital Restrictions Management. Just about every Microsoft product built these days comes with copy protection, registration, etc., treating the user like a criminal. I don't like being told what I can and can't do with my own computer.

3. Vendor lock-in. Microsoft is the master of Vendor lock-in. Products are deliberately designed to not interoperate with the competition.

4. The hood is welded shut. On more than one occasion, I have solved problems by going all the way to the source code. You can't do that with Windows. Again, they hide stuff from the user so fixing things that break is much more difficult.

5. Lack of freedom. Combine DRM with vendor-lock-in and the incredibly obnoxious licensing legalese, Microsoft basically owns your computer. There is something to "free-as-in-speech" software.

6. Almost forgot, Windows' infamous security features, or lack thereof. I've never, ever had to clean a virus off my Debian box, and I have it firewalled tight (all ports blocked since I don't do much with my machine remotely.)

you both right very true.

One reason I prefer Linux to Win XP is familiarity. I rarely use WinXp so when I do have to, I always have trouble figuring out how to get things working. On Linux I know how it works and generally things go more smoothly.

For example, I got a wireless card for my laptop. With Mandrake I had it running in a few minutes. On WinXP I've spend a couple of hours trying to get it working and it still doesn't. I think its a driver problem but I can't really be bothered to fix it.

Other reasons not already mentioned:
- On Linux I can run all the software I want and its legal, cheap or free and I know there isn't spyware or malware inside it.
- With Linux I get more software bundled with the distro; Windows gives me almost nothing out of the box.

First of all, you should really try searching, we have tons of threads already covering this topic.
Secondly, this is the wrong forum. It says Linux - General at the top, not General.
Thirdly, this thread has nothing good that will come out of it. We don't need threads that are just going to bash others, companies and so on as the title indicates that this thread is leading to an unconstructive thread.

I am closing this thread, you can contribute to one of our other ongoing threads in a constructive manner, but LQ is not about bashing others, that's not our purpose.

Regards.

PS. Since we have many threads that are in the likes of Windows versus Linux, any new one's that are started I'm going to request to close them, as I will in this forum and any others I see in other forums I will report to close. Its just plain stupid to me to start the same conversation over and over again when we have threads already covering this topic. Browse the Distro forum, we have one that is about 1,000 posts long and has been ongoing for almost 2 years now... contribute to that one, don't create new ones.