Everyone that uses Linux has his or her own reason for doing so. Some prefer it outright, others may be sick of the politics surrounding other operating systems. I have been using Linux since around 2002 and it has been an incredible journey.

One of the most oft-asked questions I get is “Why should I switch to Linux?” It comes to me either via inbox or sound waves attacking my aural system every day. So I thought I would bring these answer to the outstanding readers here at gHacks to inspire conversation on the topic.

I am reading a lot of posts where new users are completely discourages by the seemingly over-complexity of Linux. They have the Windows background and they use Linux like it was Windows. The learning curve in Linux can be steep.

Microsoft pounded itself on the chest last week saying over 96% of netbooks now use Windows. This made me somewhat sad, because I was hoping these little computers could be the break Linux had been waiting for.

Mike Dailey tries to convince us gave me the impression that moving to Linux is an all-or-nothing proposal. That's plain ridiculous. An undertaking of that scale is a gigantic project, which no CIO will endorse. What you can do is introduce FOSS technology in the enterprise, step by step. Once it has proven itself you may take the next step.

An article discussing the less obvious barriers to GNU/Linux adoption

When you work in the software industry, either in the services sector, or in the products sector, you never get to see the harmony, the cooperation and the amiability that, you find in the Free Software Community.

Ahead of the first-ever Open Source Software (OSS) BarCamp event, which will take place on 28 March in Dublin, chief-organiser Laura Czajkowski has said that small-to-medium businesses have much to gain from open source, even if it is just to realise that there are alternatives out there.