I'd suggest having a whitelist of allowed process names that are allowed to be running during the test as that user. If any other programs are running when the program starts, it should not allow the test to be started until those programs are shut down (add a "kill all" button for newbie users). It should also have a watchdog that polls to make sure that the system is still clean. If it finds any unwanted programs, it should give the user 10 seconds to kill them or fail the test (or require a password to ignore this process). If you can do this in the same thread as the testing program, and in such a way that you can't just attach gdb and pause execution while you google the answers, you're onto a winner.

"Back in the 80's and 90's, the argument for monolithic was performance. Considering that CPUs were so small, it made sense. If Linux had been on a micro kernel design, it would have been slower than MS. IOW, it would never have gotten off the ground."

Was the Linux kernel comparing itself with MS back at its conception? I thought it was just designed as a nice new Unix kernel (and only got GNUified out of chance).

I'd only be comfortable comparing Unix with Unix, and letting the handful of Other Systems go play Minesweeper or whatever they use them for these days.