Is Linux really faster than MS Windows ?

[gened]

> 
> I have to read the rest but I would like to add something to support one reason
> Microsoft wants to tout their quick boot times. Although Microsoft tried and
> tried to fix the blue screen of death they couldn't eliminate the problems, so
> they switched gears to have a quicker reboot...
> 
> 
> 

Also the os is not finished booting when you get a prompt to login, so
comparing how long it takes prompt's to show up is not accurate. 
Showing a prompt x or terminal is the last thing linux distro's  do. xp
shows the prompt, but still "boots" in the backround. You have to force
it to wait for the network to get it to work properly on ad domains some
times.

If linux distro's were to do the same thing it would probably show a
prompt right after mounting the file systems. 

In short xp only pretends to boot faster, ms figured that people would
be more understanding if they got a prompt right away, even if the total
time of waiting was the same.