The only negative point is the lack of Linux version of the top-selling Windows' games.
http://rangit.com/software/top-8-linux-games-of-2007/.
I boot Windows exclusively for running racing games, or I fire my Playstation 3 to play Granturismo and Winning Eleven soccer games.
Guess what, there is even a Linux version running on the Playstation 3:
http://psubuntu.com/

Linux is very stable and a lot safer than Windows (I don't have an antivirus or a firewall on my Linux-Ubuntu system). It is as easy to install as Windows XP or Vista - and unless you have some very weird, unusual or very new hardware, all your peripherals (disk drive, printer, video card, etc..) will be automatically detected (just like Windows)

Updating the Linux kernel, and all your installed applications, is one mouse click away. Linux's secret weapon is the “package”. When you install an application, you download and install that specific application “package”, which includes the main application program - plus all the other required applications and libraries, the main application depends on.

Why use Linux? Because it's fun!

Because you'll impress women. (well, maybe not.)

Linux is an operating system. The kernel was written by a young Finnish student named Linus Torvald in 1991. Linus had that genius idea to post his work on the internet, so anyone could collaborate.
By definition, an operating system doesn't do anything "useful" for the common user. It relies on applications, such as word processors, web browsers, graphics programs, etc. to do that. A "distribution" (or distro, for the geeks) is the Linux kernel combined with selected applications.
Each distro is tailored to fill some specific purpose, such as a server distro, for example. If you want to have an overview of the most popular distros, go to: http://distrowatch.com/dwres.php?resource=major.

Ubuntu is the most popular distro, especially among Linux newbies because:

• It is very user-friendly and easy to install
• It has a lot of available applications
• You can try Ubuntu by running it directly from the CDROM before installing it on your hard disk drive (it is a live CD)
• It has first class documentation and support (a very, very active forum)

Let's jump into the details of installing Linux.
FIRST, BE SURE TO BACKUP ALL YOUR IMPORTANT FILES AND DOCUMENTS!

1) I strongly suggest you purchase and install a separate hard disk drive dedicated exclusively to Ubuntu. You can install Windows and Ubuntu on the same disk drive, but it's a little more complicated.
Hard disk drives are dirt cheap these days. For example, an 80 GB hard disk can be found for $ 48.57.

2) You'll need an installation CDROM. You have 2 choices:

A) Order the Ubuntu CDROM from the Ubuntu website. The CDROM and shipping are free. Shipping can take up to 10 weeks.
http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/shipit-faq

B) Download the free image (iso file), and burn it on a CDROM using Windows.
http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/download

In both cases, you must know if the processor on your system is 32 or 64 bits. If in doubt, download the 32 bits version. It'll work on 64 bits systems, but of course your processor won't exploit its full capabilities.

3) Be sure to have Windows already installed, because Windows is not very polite and will erase what is on the boot sector on the hard disk. On the contrary, Ubuntu will detect if Windows is already installed, and act accordingly.

4) Check your system BIOS and be sure that the CDROM drive is on top of the list in the boot priority.

5) Insert the Ubuntu CDROM, reboot and ... voila! Watch Ubuntu come to life.

Jacques