There are times when I hate Micro$haft more than usual.

[hobbit709]

Replaced the two DVD-RW drives and Windoze decided it needed to be reactivated due to hardware changes. Then had to do it on the phone because it wouldn't do it online.

AARRGGHH!!

[hunter]

1. That's just one of the reasons I quit Windows on my personal machines.

I mess around with hardware frequently. Linux and free open source software doesn't care.

Upgrading hardware, or to a new machine entirely, is easy.

Copy my old home folder to the new or rebuilt machine, done.

I've transplanted hard drives into radically different machines and they've booted up without complaint.

That never happens with Windows.

I never have to "reactivate" anything, I never have to enter activation codes or serial numbers.

I quit my brief fling with Microsoft products at 98SE. My current Debian machine emulates every computer I've ever used and I'm able to open all the computer files I've ever saved. Some of these programs and files were first written to nine track tapes, eight inch floppy drives, and cassette tapes.

I still have an eight inch floppy drive gathering dust in my garage but I haven't powered it up for many years. I'm afraid if I did the old electrolytic capacitors would explode like firecrackers.

[hobbit709]

2. My laptop has a heavily tweaked Windows 8

My main computer has a heavily tweaked Windows 7, My HTPC runs Mint 16, My other computers are dual boot machines with Win 7 and Mint.
I have some specialized software that is easier to run under Win than Linux. And I fix Windows machines for a living so I have to keep my hand in.