"What OS is right for me?" - My thoughts to that question

That hampster link scared the bejesus out of me 57686..

And my thanks to everyone here for the support you have all given me on this insight. Rare is it to speak such things about equality without having the flames pour down like hell and brimstone.

I have read 'The Art of War' and the writings of Pooh are the missing chapters to that great book.

Actually quite a bit of "The Art of War" are in the writings of Pooh. To be more specific, they are in the writings of "The Tao of Pooh"

http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0140...53#reader-link

;) Thanks for the compliment though, I did get what you meant.

I was wondering, is it possible to get into a machine (remotely) with no open ports?

If not then a default install of Gentoo (yeah! :), is not vulnerable to a remote attack.
Because there are no services running on a default, from the install manual, install.

If so then, oh well... :)

If there are no open ports then the chance of a remote hack is MUCH less likley. If you run a default gentoo installation and don't run a single service save the primary command line (yes, that means excluding x windows), then you narrow down all outside activity to nothing more than DoS(denial of service) attempts using ICMP, TCP, and UDP pings.

So, if your base question is:

If I shut off every single port on my computer, can someone hack into me *remotely*?

Then my answer is:

No. Because it is just like building a prison without doors, windows, vents, or circulation systems. There is not a single way to get in and out. You can of course knock on the walls (ICMP ping), but it certainly won't do you any good if there isn't a door to "crack"

very well addressed. my father thinks that Win is the safest OS, but this will blow his mind.

Dual-Boot is the only way for me.