Linux as a backup plan

It's easy to screw up your computer. Or someone else's, as it were.

Errant internet browsing is likely the foremost culprit, followed closely by installing crap software with strange origins. It's easy to see why this happens. You want your computer to do things. Neat, amazing things that wow you. This is not an unreasonable expectation.

Sadly, just as children must be told that not everyone in the world can be trusted to not molest or kill them, users must be educated that very few pieces of software are trustworthy. More of that for another entry.

Linux is strange and mysterious, perhaps you heard it mentioned in passing. It's not so bad. Here's the skinny. It's really really different from windows. You probably won't understand how any of it works... but that can be a good thing. Perhaps you'll be discouraged from fiddling with it once somebody sets it up for you.

A very small operating system can be installed as a dual boot option so in case your Windows installation goes to hell, you'll still have a minimum level of functionality from your computer. (internet, e-mail, etc.) All you'd have to do is restart and select your alternative operating system.