As many of us are gearing up for Windows 8’s imminent release, it may well be worth considering some alternatives. I don’t know about you, but after XP to Windows 7, via Vista, the idea of another OS from Microsoft, while not yet causing night sweats, is engendering some trepidation. For one, there are its networking quirks — XP didn’t talk to 7 at the Windows network level in my case. There are also expensive driver and program compatibility issues for older programs and equipment. 
