Lots of these examples (particularly with regards to stability/crashiness) are really about Windows 95/98/XP, which are the last versions of Windows that many Linux users ran/remember. My first Linux install was done immediately after Word crashed 10-12 times in a single *hour* during a paper I was writing at school. Now I use Word 8-10 hours a day and I can't recall 8-12 crashes in total in the past three *years.* It is really unfortunate that most of us don't realize what we're competing against - it is a very bad bubble to be living/thinking in.