Yes, good points and comments from everyone so far. I know that I am dual booting with Fedora Core and Windows XP, but I am working toward the day when I will have the option of just deleting Windows if I want to.

I really wasn't thinking that Linux would lose many (if any) regular (read, die hard) users who have been running Linux for very long. But I do wonder about people who are marginal--by this I mean those people who would switch from Windows if they had a good enough reason, for example, continued virus problems and other security vulnerabilities. Those were the people I was thinking about. If the security (virus, browser, other vulnerabilities) is better on Vista than it has been on previous releases, this could be one less point which Linux advocates would have to entice Windows users to make the switch.

(Note*** By my last comment, I don't want to be unfair to Microsoft. Every operating system has had and will continue to have security vulnerabilities, Linux included. I have read where some of the security problems on WIndows have been made worse by less than informed and dlilligent users. This would be people running as Administrator when they really don't need to be doing it. Clicking on e-mail attachments from strangers, etc. To be fair, let me soften what I said above -- It seems there is at least a "perceived" security problem on Windows. Certainly, I think Windows have suffered a great deal more negative press in regard to viruses than Linux has.)

Actually, because of some things I've read on the net, Windows Vista make give Linux a chance to pick up some people. There may be a good many people who will have to buy a new computer if they want to run Vista because of the increased demands on hardware and memory. It's possible some people might choose to use Linux to keep an older box going longer.

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If what is said is true it could hurt _Linux_. Because it could dissuade people from changing from Windows OS's to Linux itself thus preventing them from gaining ground in the overall installed base. The more MS can prevent "leakage" towards the alternative OS's then the more it "wins".
Yes, this is what I was talking about above. The risk isn't that Linux would lose many "die hard" users but that those "on the edge" in the home user and corporate worlds would be influenced not to change.