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The old "Linux is more stable then Windows" myth that is so common with Linux users. You'll find that the stability of Linux vs. that of Windows is up for debate
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You are not required to upgrade a Linux distro, so if you want stability just stick with the older version until the kinks get worked out. I use Feisty Fawn instead of Gusty Gibbon, because I want to wait for gibbon to mature a bit. Also, the nature of bugs is different. Most linux bugs will mess up a specific program, while windows bug crash the whole OS and require a restart.
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Drivers and hardware support is a whole another story under Linux. Unfortunately hardware vendors are not keen on the idea of releasing their drivers open sourced, which has lead to the fact that Linux driver support is far worse than on Windows.
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That certainly is true. However, thats only a problem for the person building the computer or installing the OS, not the person using it. Average users won't give a damn.
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Anyone who tracks security vulnerability reports knows of the ridiculous amount that reference holes in Linux. For whatever reason this is never talked about and Linux gets this magic aura of invulnerability. Part of the confusion lies with the complexity of the open source Linux model that separates Linux "Distributions" from Linux "Kernel" vulnerabilities. Now if you start looking into and adding up Linux "Distribution" vulnerabilities that can take you into the hundreds upon hundreds of security holes that are never talked about. To simplify things I took the latest Linux Kernel v2.6.x and compared it to Windows XP. This is more than a fair comparison for the shocking results to follow.
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Considering this guy knocks firefox as being insecure, that throw his entire credibility in doubt. Firefox isn't perfect, but its miles ahead of IE. Second he counts number of exploits, not severity, which is highly dishonest. Most windows exploits let you control the system, linux exploits are mostly denied root access, limiting the damage they can do. Please source the article you quoted
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Once again this argument is useless. Windows is succesful because support is a phone call away if you can't fix it yourself. Furthermore, the average PC user won't waste his time looking around for answers and you know it. They'll try to fix it themselves for a few minutes to an hour and if it doesn't work then they'll go find somebody who can fix it for them. If this wasn't the truth then there wouldn't be a market for companies like Geek Squad. People aren't going to waste their time looking around forums for answers.
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Considering the time spent on hold or getting useless answers from tech support, its often faster to do a google search of problems. Most people don't do it today, because they don't think its possible. Tech support is mostly used for trivial nonsense, not serious problems.
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The main issue is that Red Hat and other Linux vendors need to make money somehow.
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Most distros are made people who aren't interest in making money. Ubuntu, the primary desktop replacement, is free in every sense of the word.
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And the main way they can do it is through support, patches and updates. This has led Red Hat to charge its customers a yearly fee to receive support and, most important, regular patches and updates for each of their Red Hat Linux-based enterprise systems.
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Redhat is not a standard OS for the everyday user. They make systems for powerful specialized use. They deliver a much better product that windows for the server market, and charge similar prices. Not to mention you can get other server OS's for free.
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1. I don't pay for support on ANY of my PCs/Laptops and I run Windows Vista and XP - I fix my PCs myself and my laptop is under a 3 year free 24/7 support from Microsoft.
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You do pay for support when you buy the operating system. Its just a bundled product.
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Your argument about "looking for support" is useless. Unless Linux can provide 24/7 on demand support then there is really nothing to discuss. The average PC user doesn't care about fixing his computer when it brakes down. He wants easy and quick solutions a phone call away. If Linux can't provide this then your entire argument is useless.
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It can provide 24/7 support. Canonical is support for business users. Dell provides support contracts for their hardware with pre-installed linux.