There may be some debate over whether or not Linux distros are "ready for prime time" as a desktop OS (I personally think distros like Ubuntu and Fedora are close enough for most users). But what Linux is really good for is making use of older hardware that can no longer keep up with the bloat introduced by service packs, patches, updated programs, and the like.
I'm typing this from an older PC that used to run Windows XP but really couldn't keep up with SP2 or SP3 -- but it runs Fedora just fine. (I only need Firefox and OpenOffice for 99% of what I do on here, anyway.)
> I only need Firefox and OpenOffice for 99% of what I do
> on here, anyway
This is true for at least 80% of the desktop community.
Many improvements in Linux continue to be made, and it is a bit maddening and confusing to keep up with them all, but the Linux community is extremely helpful.
Because all the code is Open Source, kernel bugs are reported openly on the Linux Kernel Mailing List and can be fixed by anybody with the expertise and time to do so.
Bugs in other Open Source software are dealt with in the same manner.
Stuff gets fixed FAST and obtaining patched software is automatic in most modern Linux distributions.
And you seldom need to reboot to take advantage of patched software. Often, all that’s required is to restart the application or system service or unload/reload a kernel driver module. Both very trivial operations.
Must be pretty old...tried a slipstreamed cd?
We had an old PC that shipped with XP Home in Nov 02 or so, ran like crap with it...we tossed ME on for most of that time, ran like a dream, then about 6 months with Win2k, before XP Pro SP3 from a slipstreamed cd. Not only does XP run much better now than it used to, I’d say it runs pretty comparably with Win2k on that hardware.
I’ve heard that there seem to be less issues installing it like that than patching it from the base version.