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...but the truth is that Microsoft have too much power.

They can do anything they want, have money, governement help (MS is a big taxes bussines with influences), etc.

Rememeber, MS have recognized it's use of monopoly. They killed BeOS, said I'm sorry, I shoot you and thats kill you but take this bucks. But the matter is that Be Inc. is death.

Settled or not the result in that point was that there will not be more Be Inc. to compete.

Realy I fear Microsoft use of market position (against consumers, yes the actual state of things are as Microsoft likes). Really they can do this again with any company (kill, buy, silence, etc... -alo alternatives-) it is the MS way.

And for open source, they can't buy it, but with patents or things like paladium the cusmtomer choice (a la XBOX or modchip to get other thing working) and security will be very compromissed (what your computer do?, you don't know, you really don't know, you trusth in the MS tecnology behind it). With open source software at least exist the code review posibility.

For requirements, be realistic, if you want to everything looks better it will increase requirements, on any platform.

Now I work on a PIII 1 GH and 128 Ram win XP, but it feels slow and yerky, I tried install .NET runtime on it and it died, become unusable.

I run very satisfying Mandrake 9.2 on a eMachine 400ix (Celeron 400, 128 Ram and 20 GB hd), but Win XP was unusable there.

I hade noticed that in most of cases the change to Windows or Upgrade come related to a Hardware change (new computer). With old hardware are fewer cases for conscientious Windows Upgrade (atached to a hardware update of course).

The most of people don't care what are they using, if you puts something that simply works they get happy. I have to reinstall my counsins computer at least 4 times at year every year, they used Windows Millenium, new brand computer with XP and the same thing. They don't know how to do fix or configure it, even mail, internet and preferences need to be tweaked for somebody else. When they try to do something by themselves (like install some hardware), bye bye computer.

The same is for Linux (some configurations are cruel to do, find, fix).

The advantage difference for Microsoft success rely on their Tactics on market -preinstall and exclusivity enforcements - and the actual general knowledgement about it.

For Linux success the general support and knowledgement for linux everywhere is needed (Everybody know a little about windows -like reboot your box to get it working again -, but for Linux in the real world most lambs don't even know what it is, means).

You really need internet connection to solve some obscure things in Linux, in the masses or third world countries the internet 24/7 still is not a reality. This also applies to microsoft (windows update) but if you aren't on internet it's harder to catch a virus (Cry if you are geting infected files using other media).