Atleast in scientific application there is no reason to use Imperial. Metric makes all calculations simpler, and is accepted by a much larger portion of the world, and should be the standard in all science.

Yeah, cause when i am on a packed train, all i want to do it talk my private message into my phone :)

Voice recognition is over hyped, and it will not work as a sole means for data entry, ever.

Not sure if the OP meant this, but I like the fact that if I have a game I like, for example L4D2 which is around 7 gigs, and a friend picks it up, I can bring over the backup files from my computer, and install the game using those. He does not have to go and waste a few hours re-downloading the games. All of my games are backed up to an external NAS at my house, and whenever I install them, its just a matter of clicking on the files on the NAS, and running the install. Then once its installed, the game is automatically patched to the latest version by steam( I can re-backup with this patch for next time ).
I can then bring my NAS with my to my friends, and as long as he owns the license he can still use the same install files. Very much like when games were bought on physical media. The advantage? No Stupid CD/DVD protection, i can give him a COPY of the backup file on DVD if I like.
No Key to remember. How many old games do I have that I no longer have the original packaging for? That means I have to crack the game to get around the activation key.
Also I can keep redundant copies of the game at home, and if my house burns down, steam still has a copy for me. If I own all my games on DVD and my house burns down, I'm S.O.L.

So, the first one builds a friend, then each builds a friend, and each of those builds a friend. Soon enough there will be millions, and they will be able to invade your blood cells!

I for one welcome our nano sized robot overlords

Your average Joe probably doesn't even know what IPv4 is, let alone the reasons for going to 6

Hahha, i think we are getting a little flamewarry :)
OK, i admit, there are not a lot of great native games for Linux.
"Then why aren't games written for LINUX to run on Linux?"
Because there is no Demand for it? I really don't have a better answer for that. Linux makes up a very small percentage of the PC world, and many people run linux on sub par hardware. My thinkpad has built in graphics, and that good enough for me. I don't want my Linux OS for games.

But there are still some fun ones. Nexiuz is one that comes to mind. old school UT type game. What next, demanding why there isn't a Gaming community for Solaris?

There arn't games for Linux, because, there isn't a Market for games for Linux.
I Use Linux for work, and I used to use it for school. I still use it a lot at home for browsing/music/media related things. When I want to play games, I boot into Windows.
I Use Linux for productive things. Just like some people boot up their PS3 to play games, i see nothing wrong with booting up my Windows box.

Oh, and SDL and Allegro are no where near what you can with DirectX10...or probably 9 for that matter. The biggest problem is there isn't demand, or any developers willing to supply. I don't see the issue which makes this a Game changer for using Linux.

Well,

Install Ubuntu
Install Flash/restricted packages
Install non-default packages(pidgin, xchat, compilation tools)(all done via apt)
Do a system upgrade
Customize my Appearence settings
Get a few Firefox addons

A Base linux install is quicker then Windows, and it comes with 1/2 of your software installed. I meant a fully configured setup.

On Windows, first you install the OS, then you need to hunt down all of your Driver CDs(Obviously drivers are an issue in Linux as well, but can't say i have ever had a 10/100 NIC not work in Linux, i have in Windows). Then install Office, install Firefox, Install antivirus, install windows updates, install Flash, install Java. There is no options to send one apt-get install command with a list you want, you have to crawl the web, looking for the latest version of every tool you want.

Personally, i'll go with APT

"Games are a common one."

People keep bringing up the Games issue. Games are written for WINDOWS, they will run on Windows. You can't expect developers to spend enough time to copy DirectX to match the one included with Windows today(although Wine does a fairly good job).
Complaining that Linux can't run Windows games, is like complaining that my Xbox360 games won't run on my PS3, it makes no sense. You can't play windows games without buying windows, just like you can't play PS3 games without buying a PS3. So i don't accept that argument.

"Yes: Windows 3.1. But nowadays PCs"

Again, you started on 3.1 and have had...15ish... years to learn the ins and outs of Windows. Come back after using Linux for 15 years, and it will be simple. There is plenty of hardware out there that even in Windows requires that I go hunting online for software/drivers. Network cards included.

At least Linux does not popup when i'm trying to install networking drivers, asking "Would you like to search online for this software?" :)

Then stop trying? Clearly you have too many Windows related requierments.
It takes me about 2 hours to go from Format, to fully running Linux Distro, with browsers, drivers, office software, chat software, and several other things that I need.
If you don't want to take the time to learn a new system, and find the tools you need, then go use Windows where you are happy. Do you remember the first time you ever installed Windows. Was it all happy and great and everything worked? No, I'm sure it took you some time to learn it too. Now that you've been using it for a few years, you say its easy and you know what you need for it. Same thing happens with Linux. Its not like the linux people just magically installed the OS and knew everything form day one.
I've been using Linux, alongside Windows, for almost 6 years now, and obviously at first it was a challenge. But with practice, and patience, it now works great.
Now, again, if you don't have the time or willingness to invest in learning a new Operating System, then don't try, and complain about how its not usable.
Just like learning any new skill(and using an operating system effectively is a skill in my opinion), it takes Time, Interest, and Effort.
If you have hardware issues, that another story, but personally i have not had any hardware issues since Ubuntu 8.04 on my thinkpads or PCs.

I admit i run XP in a wmware session on my Linux laptop, but that for things such as outlook and Office, and the rest of my tasks are done in Linux, and many of them couldn't be done in Windows. To each his own :)

You can get away with fraud when dealing with the government. It's the Vacuum company that got them in trouble. The government would have probably went on for a few more years buying them if it wasn't for these people getting greedy and going after the lucrative vacuum market.

So, now they will just take away my laptop for 4 days. Good thing my flight is in two hours, and I am not back for 6 weeks...

-EL

The difference is that we all know that Google is a giant Advertiser.
Most people are under the impression that Ubuntu is a free OS, not an Ad Sponsored/Data mining revenue oriented OS.

Who else would pay for it? The important thing is who is eating, and what do we get out of it?

If you have the money, you should look into some Network Access Control(NAC), or enterprise firewall solutions. Something by companies like Mirage, ForeScout, or Fortinet(among others). This way, you can force any laptop on the network to authenticate, either AD, 802.1x, or captive portal. You can then run a host check to check for up to day Virus scanning software, as well as many other things.
While they are at school, the laptop has certain policies. You can push firewall, etc to the host. As well they can have Single Sign on for network resources.
At home the user has a client to connect into school resources through IPSec or SSL VPN. Policies can be put in place for home use, or can be allowed full access, as long as when you reconnect to the network you meet your policy.

Look into these companies and find a distributor to help you install it. Each devices servers different needs.
My company has deployed a similar solution for a School board in Ontario in the last year, and so far they like it.