There are many operating systems out there, and the question is
commonly asked: which one is the best one? Well, the simple answer is:
there is no simple answer. Everyone is different; everyone has their
own ideal operating system. This article is going to be focusing on the
"Big 3": Windows, Mac OS, and Linux. One thing I must say early is that
you can have two, or even 3 or 4 different operating systems running on
the same computer (not at the sime time )

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Windows: Honestly, Windows is my
least-favorite operating system, but some love it. Windows is the most
popular operating system, with about 90% of all computers running it,
but that dosen't necessarally mean that it's the best operating system
of all.

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Pros:

Loads of software runs on it.

Can be ordered pre-installed on most computers.

Great for gaming.

Cons:

Most common target of hackers. (Not only because it's insecure, but also because most computers run it).

Virus prone.

Crashes are very common. (*cough* blue screen of death *cough*).

Very slow, unless running more expencive hardware.

Costs up to $200.

Bad customer support.

Bugs common.

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Mac OS: Definately one of my favorites. Very good for almost all computer users.

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Pros:

Intuitive user interface.

Very fast.

Computer made by Apple, the same people who make Mac OS, thus there is more hardware-software compatibility.

Easy upgrading.

Pretty!

Makes up for only about 5% of the computer population, and is not a big target for hackers.

Virtually NO viruses.

Compatible with most devices.

Wonderful creativity software. (iLife).

Many useful applications come with it, such as Apple Mail, a wonderful mail client.

Cons:

Still somewhat expencive: $130.

Lacks the availability of software that Windows has.

As for gaming, mac as little to nothing going for it.

Sometimes lacks compatibility with some file types from Windows/Linux.

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Linux: Linux itself is just a
really simple text operating system, nothing like the operating systems
you see today. However, Linux is what's called Open Source, which means
it's free to download, and the code for it is freely available online.
So, people took the basic Linux source, and expanded upon it, creating
their own versions (more like what you see today), called
"distorbutions". Some of the most popular Linux distrobutions include
Ubuntu, Gentoo, Red Hat, Fedora, openSUSE, Debian, Mandriva, PCLinuxOS,
and Slackware. My favorite distrobution is Ubuntu Linux, probably the
most popular of all the distrobutions. There are countless other,
smaller, distrobutions available. Although I only started using Linux
almost a month ago, it has already become my favorite operating system.
Here's the best part: IT'S FREE!!! That's right, IT'S FREE!!! All
popular Linux distrobutions are available for free online. All right,
here goes the pro's and cons list:

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Pros:

Free.

Community maintained (constantly updated).

Highly secure.

Highly customisable.

Countless pieces of software available.

WINE. WINE allows you to run Windows applications from Linux. Even some
popular games, such as Civilization IV and Age of Empires III.

VERY pretty!

Comes with a good deal of free software, including: Firefox, OpenOffice, and even Sudoku!

A huge community of support-almost every problem can be fixed.

Very fast, even on very old computers. (I have "Puppy Linux" running on a 13-year-old computer!)

Almost NEVER freezes.

Upgrade to the latest version by literally clicking ONE button.

Have multible desktops at the same time, and switch between them whenever you want. You can have as many as you want!

Free. Did I mention that?

Seamless hardware integration.

Cons:

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh............................

No, I've got nothing.

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All right, well, make the right decision. If you have any questions,
just comment on this article and I'll do my best to answer them.