Hi, I'm new to the forum, as you can probably tell by my post count.

Anyway. I decided that the Windows 2000 machine that I was using as a file server (Athlon 1700+, 768MB Ram) was going to waste, most of the time it was just idling. So I decided to switch the system with this Debian Linux machine (Pentium 3 1GHz, 256MB Ram) which I use as a desktop.

So I switched the Hard Drives, and booted the Linux machine. I did not recompile the kernel for the new hardware before doing so, I left it as is. Regardless of that, Linux booted just fine, having no problems due to the new hardware I recompiled the kernel with support for Athlon processor, for the mainboard and for the soundcard, and now it runs sweeeet

Windows, however, was a different story. I turned the machine on, and before it even showed the logo, it rebooted itself Windows needed to be reinstalled.

Atta boy Linux

Linux scores also when you try a flash drive and other such thingys. Windows needs a driver for them but under Linux, they run just out of the box.

Cheers.

I think this is not entirely correct.
Windows 2000 and XP do not need drivers for a USB drive.
Windows 98 and less does.

Yes! That would be my second success story, getting my flash drive working under Linux. Well, basically following this guide got it going for me:

http://www.cs.sfu.ca/%7Eggbaker/personal/cf-linux

As already stated, Win2K and XP don't need drivers for flash drives.

I have actually 2 success stories in Gni-Linux.
1. I have a success story with my Debian-sid-Kanotix system. I recently bought a 1024MB DDR for my Compaq Presario Desktop. I had only 256 MB before, so I now have 1.25 gigs. My Linux is so much smoother and faster now. I had no hickups. Linux just knew what to do with it. My Winblows XP socalled "proffessional" is slower and buggier now for some reason. Certain programs won't even load such as firefox. I get a message that reads "Inadeqate system resources." In task manager, it is showing that I am using 880 MB at the time, leaving plenty of memory to spare. In the category of hardware upgrade: Linux 1, Windows 0.
2. My significant other is basically a user. She shops online, checks email, and listens to downloaded music and videos. Once I used apt-get to retreive and install the proper media codec, we can now watch all common media types. I've successfully converted her to Linux now. She don't even like windows anymore. In the category of attempts to convert family and friends: Linux 1, Windows 0.

I tried the same just the other day, changing from an Athlon XP to a new motherboard + Athlon 64, and was amazed at how seamless the transition was.

The only time I tried the same on Windows, it blue-screened at boot and had to be re-installed. I was pleasantly surprised then to find that Linux booted with no problems whatsoever after the switch. Like you say, all that needs to be done is to recompile the kernel with the new hardware for the motherboard and change the CPU setting.

Brilliant