1) Price.

I have to be honest and say a big part is the price. If you have a good internet connection, you can get a copy of Linux for free. I don't mean illegally either, I mean legally free. There are many, many different versions of Linux available, and by law, all of them must be made freely available to the public. When you buy a version of Linux, what you are usually paying for is the cost of the CD/DVD (the media, not the content), the packaging, manuals and support. What our customers pay for is our time to install Linux and various applications and our support. Linux is very easy to use, but you still have to know what you are doing to install and configure the operating system. Here is a pricing example for the Microsoft OS and office:

Add to this the fact that the above can only be installed on 1 PC - many of us have multiple PC's for kids, work, etc. Also, you will surely want more than this on the PC. You can get some applications for free, but most of them you will have to pay something for. I don't know of any Linux applications that cost money. If there are any, you can bet you can get 10 other applications that do the same thing for free.

2) Security / vulnerability.

Everyone knows about viruses and spyware. It seems that every other day we hear of yet another attack you need to watch out for, and yet another patch you need to download to protect yourself. I don't know how many times friends have come to me complaining that their computer is "really, really slow, or just hangs". I run a spyware scanner, and sure enough, hundreds or even thousands of tiny spyware programs have installed themselves from different web pages they've visited, and now their combined presence is enough to bring their PC to a crawl or a standstill - and who knows what personal information they've stolen and sent back to their creators!

With Linux, you don't have to worry about this. Not because no one wants to go after Linux users, but because of the way in which Linux is designed. It does not give these nasty hackers the opportunity. They simply can't. That's a big reason why in Feb. 2006, there was almost 24 million Linux servers on the web. That's over 66% of known servers.

3) Flexibility / Customization/ Open source.

OK...this is the most complex one.

I find that all Microsoft Operating Systems look, feel and act the same way, and for a good reason...there is only one desktop environment and a strict set of rules for how applications work. This is good and bad. The good thing is that if you can use your MS based PC, you can use any MS based PC. Developers who want to write a program to run on Windows have to conform to the Windows template, ensuring that it will work with the OS and that every Windows user will be able to find their way around.

So what's so bad about that? The problem is that developers can only do things ONE way: the Bill Gates way. Now don't get me wrong, I know that Bill Gates is a brilliant man and has changed the world with his foresight and ingenuity. BUT...Microsoft has had such a stranglehold on the Operating System world that there is little room for variety or creativity outside this one man's point of view.

There is an old saying that there is more than one way to skin a rabbit. How does one find other ways, possibly better ways, if one man owns all the rabbits and only wants to do it his way?

According to Wiki, Microsoft has 76,000 employees in 102 countries. I don't know what percent of them are techies, and how may of those techies can actually influence Mr. Gates and his hired minions, but I imagine it's a fair amount.

Now, compare that to how many programmers there are in the whole world. Add to that, how may of these programmers know people who have specific needs or ideas. Now give these people the creative freedom to do what they want and when they want to do it. The possibilities become awesome.

OK...let's get this into perspective. Obviously not all developers in the world are writing applications for Linux, and even fewer are working on the Linux kernel, the heart of the OS. But the point is, they are free to do so whenever they want because the Linux source, the code that makes everything work, is open source. This comes back to that free thing I mentioned in my first reason for using Linux. This is possible because Linus Torvalds, creator of the Linux kernel had the extremely cool idea of releasing this code as GPL (General Public License). This is why there are so many different "flavors" of Linux. Anyone can make their own Linux Distribution based on their own tastes and ideas.

The same is true for Linux components. The desktop is no exception. I prefer "K-Desktop" (KDE) at this point because I like the look and feel. If I want, I can pick another and my desktop can function completely differently. It will still be the same Linux, just a different desktop interface. The most popular at the moment are KDE and Gnome. Here are some examples of other desktop environments.

That's the cool thing about Linux. Joe Blow may have an idea for an application or program and write it. Then his neighbor Jane Doe sees it, likes it and makes some improvements. Next Programmer X in some other part of the world adds some more stuff to it. The next thing you know, it's this really nice program that has evolved far beyond what Joe Blow could have done, but would not have been possible without him.

Now, I am not saying that all Windows ideas or contributions are bad. Quite the opposite. Many concepts that Microsoft came up with have been adopted by the Linux community. I think I like the KDE desktop because it is in my opinion (don't shoot me) Windows-ish in some ways. Some people that like Gnome say it is Apple / Mac-ish. The majority of the menus in the desktops and applications are Windows-ish. You can expect to find the same things under File, Edit, Tools etc. in Linux that you would find in Windows. Take the best and forget the rest. That's the way to go woot!

4) It's the OS of the future.

So, to finish off this long rant, I really feel this is the OS of the future. When you take into account the price, the security and lack of vulnerability issues added to the flexibility, customization and the fact that it is open source, Linux is on the road to mass acceptance.

It took years for Linux to grow. But like the grass that refuses to die off, even when paved over by Microsoft's stranglehold on the market, the root system has spread deep enough and far enough that it can no longer be dismissed as mere weed. People are starting to enjoy how it feels on the feet and are getting tired of the same old same old concrete and steel.

Like most technologies that mankind evolves, the rate of speed which it grows starts off slow and builds and builds to the point that it increases speed exponentially and takes off. I feel that Linux is at the cusp of this point. I don't want to sound too corny here, but this is an OS built by the people for the people, not by one man or one company. It is not governed by financial limitations or restraints. In this day and age of computer integration into everyday life, this philosophy of free software is not only essential to allow the masses to function on a more level playing field, it is an unbeatable, unstoppable, means to eventually create the perfect OS.