Leave the choice of the operating system to the consumer (Windows, Linux, no OS-)

Question

I recently bought a new Acer laptop. I stopped using Microsoft Windows more than 10 years ago (I am a happy Ubuntu Linux user). However, when I bought my laptop, I was forced to buy it with Windows 8.1 pre-installed on it. I told the salesman I didn't need Windows 8.1 and even if it was pre-installed, the first thing I would do would be to format the hard drive and put Ubuntu Linux on it. In the end, I still had to buy it (and therefore buy a Microsoft product I will never use). I think it would be very beneficial for customers if they could choose the Operating System of their choice (or no OS at all) when buying a new computer. Of course you could still tell that the computer has been only tested and validated with a given version of an Operating System and that there will not be any technical assistance if another OS is used on a given computer. For information, in many countries in Europe, it's illegal to force people to get something when they buy something else. This is unfortunately still what is happening in 2014 in the laptop/desktop World because of Microsoft monopoly.

Answer 1

ML2014: I too would like to consider implementing UBUNTU on an old Acer portable with an AMD processor and a 60GB built in drive that has a known maximum address space of 2gb.  It is currently using the Windows XP operating system it came with but in March 2014 Microsoft plans to discvoninue all support.  Hopefully they will not take down the text archives on the corporte web, but I would not put it past them to perpetrate that crime.  I'm a retired once certified Microsoft Professional that still has an identity on the web set up some years ago.  (I forget how many)  but Putting UBUNTU on an older portable like the one I have seems like a sensible option when compared to keeping it in a maintenance limbo.  I sprang for a new LI-Ion battery for it last year and it is stable as a rock right now, but not used very much and I would like to put it in the hands of an Open Source based Non Profit I work with once it is properly set up and configured so that their one-year VISTA folks can have yet another computer to use in the field. It connects to the local urban free wireless internet and the password protected wifi server in the offices under Windows XP and I do not have a clue about UBUNTU, it would be a learning project for me.  Have you come to a decision regarding UBUNTU for your portable.  Mine is an ACER 5000.