[e-mail] (Score 1)

I don't work for Microsoft, and I've been seeking stories from people who have switched from other operating systems to Windows. Those who attack Windows or Microsoft will say that no or few such people exist. I theorize that they exist plenty but are hard to find because they don't advertise themselves or indulge in advocacy. The principle of social proof from social psychology (read Cialdini) applies well here: a person invests more in a belief the more other people believe it. Hence, groups holding minority positions--eg cults, radical activists, proponents of new scientific theories, Apples or Linux users, proponents of unorthodox diets, etc--will bolster their own belief by converting others to their system. The flipside is that the average person in the majority position, let's call it the orthodoxy, doesn't feel compelled to convert anybody. Why? Plenty of people already believe the idea. They don't need to feel any better about their choice. Rather than acknowledge the possibility that Microsoft could actually find a real person who converted to Windows, it's much easier for those in the alternative systems to discredit it as falsehood to protect their reality tunnels. Likewise, you'll attack me and WinAddict as Microsoft shills. Whatever. Send your switch stories to this current Windows and Linux; and past and perhaps future Mac user. [e-mail]