i know u hate windows, but...

[Domicinator]

Senlis said:

Soleron said:

I'd add

7) Lack of Standardisation. Linux and Mac OS X applications tend to be more consistent with each other and the desktop, whereas most Windows devs reinvent the wheel or go crazy with colours and buttons. Even MS don't stick to their own interface guidelines for their Vista apps - look at WMP vs. WMM vs. IE vs. Office 2007.

and

8) Lack of Preinstalled Functionality. Vista doesn't come with an office suite, a serious graphics editor, a media format conversion tool, Flash*, Java*, a personal organiser, or an IM client. Linux has all of these things preinstalled, and I think Mac OS X has most of them.

As the big things that affect ordinary users.

*Gnash. **IcedTea.

 

There are a lot of other reasons than what I listed.  I agree with these two.

Fortunately, on Windows or Linux, I can go out and get every single one of those types of applications free of charge from any creator/vendor I choose.  I don't have to get the blessing of Steve Jobs before I run something on my PC, and I certainly am not restricted to a small list of things that have been deemed acceptable by him.  I can go to Download.com, find the best rated choice for my specific need, and I'm off to the races.  BTW, OpenOffice is a perfectly acceptable alternative to MS office, and it's 100% free.

Sorry, have to add this:  Windows gets ripped on CONSTANTLY for all the preinstalled stuff.  In fact, they're talking about taking it all out for Windows 7 and just having you download the things you specifically need.  This is actually a move I do NOT support, but most MS critics do.