Advantages of Linux

Freedom:  Most Linux distros are free..... users do not need to pay for a copy, but this is only one aspect of freedom enjoyed by Linux users! In addition, Linux distros can be freely downloaded and legally installed on as many computers as you want and freely (and legally) given to other people. Because most distros are open source, you have access to the source code and can customize Linux to be whatever you want it to be; you can even create your own distro if you like!

Linux is easy to install:  In many instances, it is actually easier to install Linux to your computer than Windows.

Linux is very stable:  Linux systems rarely crash, and when they do, the whole system normally does not go down. The "blue screen of death" familiar to Windows users is not a worry for Linux users.

Linux is less vulnerable to computer malware:  Because most computer malware are designed to attack Windows (often through Active X which is not typically found in Linux) the odds are considerably less for Linux to be infected with a virus than Windows

Linux typically does not slow down over time: Unlike Windows, Linux does not easily become bogged down with spyware, viruses, trojans, etc., which can greatly reduce a computer's performance. Also, because Linux does not have a registry like Windows, it is not plagued with registry errors which can slow down a computer over time. Finally, the hard drives on Windows (especially Windows XP and older) computers need to be defragmented on a regular basis in order to maintain faster performance, due to being formatted in NTFS. On the other hand, because Linux is normally formatted in a different way using ext4 among others, there is no need to defragment a Linux hard drive.

Linux can breathe new life into old computers:  If you have an older computer (especially Pentium III or later) laying around, you can install Linux and in essence have a new computer. In many cases Linux will run faster and you can do all of the basics such as browse the Internet, email, play games, and create and edit documents, spreadsheets, and PowerPoint presentations. It should also be mentioned that Linux runs great on newer computers as well.

With Linux, you have so many choices in a wide variety of distros:  Linux comes in all sizes and flavors, which offers a wide variety from which to choose the distro which will best suit your needs. Another advantage of this variety is the innovation that is taking place in the Linux world because it is open source.

With many Linux distros, you have access to free software which numbers in the thousands!  Popular distros such as Ubuntu, PCLinuxOS, and OpenSUSE offer excellent software repositories within their package managers where virtually any type of software can be downloaded and installed to your Linux system for free.