LINUX UPDATE
The office machine that I converted to the Xandros version of Linux is still running great. I really like the operating system -- fast and clean. I'm still getting used to the software. I'm learning OpenOffice and surviving with it. It's not WordPerfect but it functions at about the same level as Microsoft Word. The Xandros system has a Windows emulator program that can run some Windows software (such as Word and IE). I was able to download the Microsoft Media Player but it will only play the video portion of a feed. Fortunately, there is a lot out there on Real Player -- and that works great -- better than on any of my Windows machines -- connecting lots faster. I tried loading WordPerfect through the emulator but that bombed and I had to uninstall it. At this point my assessment is that the operating system is terrific (perhaps better than Windows) but there isn't as much user-friendly software, yet. (Last summer the French government dumped all of their Microsoft systems after Microsoft decided it would no longer support their NT system and the French are in the process of switching all of their government computers to a Linux based system. Some government agencies in Germany and Norway have gone that direction, too.)

My experiment is intended to determine if small church offices can run off a Linux system and save big bucks. I think they can. But it's starting to get close with a lot of low-end very functional Windows systems selling for less than $500. It's the add on software that nickels and dimes you to death.