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...but it's not as bad as this:

http://eightvirtues.com/misc/2...
http://www.npr.org/2014/02/21/...

What in the unholy hell is wrong with people? I'm not religious, but my God.

I'm doing my part, much to my potential peril as I've devoted 3.5 years to it and it stands at over 30k lines of code:

http://eightvirtues.com/sanctimonia/

Note: I am not the grand parent poster.

Like it or hate it, Device Manager is a cake-walk to use and anybody can figure it out in a few minutes.

You get "Unknown device" in the device manager and you have no idea what it is or what driver or anything, you can't grab a driver from windows update, because windows update doesn't have it. The only way to know is if the driver is installed that you don't have installed because you don't know what driver you need which is fairly difficult if you're just given a machine, with no information as to what it's components are and expected to install a version of Windows with whatever drivers it needs without opening the case.

At least on Linux you can do a lspci and identify what hardware is there and what drivers you need to install. With stuff like "Hardware Drivers" (in Ubuntu) where you just point and click to install proprietary drivers when you want them, it's not really any worse than Windows at that point.

Is there a good resource for finding Linux friendly hardware?

Some Linux OEMs like:

http://system76.com/
http://www.dell.com/linux
http://www.hp.com/linux
https://www.avadirect.com/
http://cosmos.linuxbeach.net/
http://www.eightvirtues.com/
http://www.emperorlinux.com/

I have been looking for this because I am in the process of trying to build a machine that is Linux friendly and I have been struggling with this.

Linus uses Apple hardware at the moment to my knowledge.

Why is this so hard to understand?

Why are you missing the obvious point that the crapware subsidizes the hardware you've bought?

If you didn't want to buy Windows then you shouldn't have bought Windows, if you buy a product you can't just go back and return pieces of that product for a refund. What you should have done is gone to a manufacturer that sells a system without an OS or with a free (cost) OS like this or you could have gone here but they have the same problem i suppose, though it's not Windows. Many companies, including Best Buy, Lenovo, Dell and HP have tried selling computers with Linux pre-installed and they had lacklustre sales, it's a niche market so it's catered to by niche manufacturers, supply and demand.

I wonder if i could get a refund for iMovie, iPhoto, GarageBand, etc...?

I started with Debian and moved to Ubuntu some years ago. I preferred GNOME, because it was most like what I was used to with Windows and Debian. I now use Kubuntu 11.10 after playing with multiple other distros in an effort to escape Unity and GNOME 3.

No specific DE or interface style is inherently superior to another, as people's tastes, usage patterns and hardware vary greatly. That being said, there is a reason I suspect many people will be more productive and happier using a DE other than GNOME 3 or Ubuntu's Unity. Both environments are one size fits all. Customization options are almost non-existent. Whether it's main menus, window management, themes, panel sizing and positioning, panel applets, desktop management or what have you, it's just not there. Want a floating panel? Tough shit. Symlinks on the desktop? Too damn bad. Have a triple-head setup that's no longer effective? Just disconnect two of the monitors and you'll be fine.

Something I noticed about Kubuntu (and KDE in general obviously) is that it is INSANELY customizable. Incredibly I was able to set it up on my dual-head system to work exactly like GNOME 2.x. The only exceptions are that it looks absolutely beautiful and the depth and quality of its core tools are markedly superior.

I don't think Unity versus GNOME 3 versus GNOME 2.x is a valid argument. It's about how much room each offers to tailor the experience to your liking without having to take a hatchet to your system (Ubuntu is supposed to be easy, right?). Here's my setup:

http://www.eightvirtues.com/misc/Kubuntu%2011.10.jpg

Full disclosure and shameless plug: I work for Eight Virtues.

While it certainly is a better option to buy Linux systems from companies like Dell than to simply wipe Windows and install Linux yourself, something to keep in mind is that Dell is the same beast largely responsible for the continued dominance of Windows, along with HP, IBM, etc. They actually don't care, by law as a corporate entity, about anything other than their shareholders. Supporting Linux, to the microscopic degree that they do, isn't due to philosophy or a belief in the open source community.

If you want desktop Linux to catch on, look at it from an economic and social perspective. Buy from companies that believe in what they do and who want to help the open source movement. Spread the word by showing off your machine to friends. The most successful movements are built from the bottom up, not the top down, so I don't think supporting companies like Dell is the best answer. In my biased opinion, of course. ;)

Before I go into monologue mode, it looks like Dell already has something in the ultra slim ultra cheap arena. Dell EPP Inspiron 530S starts under $400, ok not as cheap as the Asus solution, but still.

Not that expensive: http://sales.eightvirtues.com/ev007.html

The whole "PC gaming is dying" argument is old, and tired. Any device that has a big market share and is capable of running a game will have games, whether PCs, cell phones, or PDAs. If refrigerators start having CPUs and LCD displays, games will be made for them.

The problem with Linux gaming and games for Linux is the same problem behind most of Linux's woes: its small desktop user base. More desktop users mean more and better bug reports, more demand for software and support services, a bigger market for interested commercial parties, and the accelerated evolution of software and distros.

As far as a gaming PC being expensive, that is pure BS. Only the fantatics who work on their machines more than they actually play any games will be spending over $1000 just for gaming upgrades.