"Your operating system, like your braking system in your car,
should respond predictably to the commands you give.
"Wait -- and what's this got to do with open source? A lot. It's
also got a lot to do with misconceptions (not just the
fear-uncertainty-doubt variety), and -- yes -- self-confidence of
both end-users and programmers.
"Linux usage -- if not outright, across the board, full time
adoption -- has been on a healthy increase for several years. Part
of this is undoubtedly due to the focus on new-user friendly
distributions (such as Ubuntu, PCLinuxOS, and Mandriva) that make
the now rather wide range of hardware supported by Linux "just
work" seamlessly. Before we go further: This is a good thing to
strive for and make new users aware of."