I agree that Linux does have issues with drivers with newer hardware but it does has a strength when it comes to established hardware. You are more likely to find drivers for older equipment. It's seems that equipment that ran happily on W8 does not necessarily run on W8.1.
Frankly it it an issue that is only of interest to a small majority. Most people buy new equipment with the current version of the operating system be that W8.1, OSX or Chrome. I was happy to experiment with Linux as it was free. I would not consider upgrading from XP or W7 to W8 if I have to pay for it. I would rather put the cash to other uses.
So let me get this straight... you aren't happy with something if you don't get it for free? What about that fancy new hardware that your "free" OS runs on, should I simply find some free hardware to run it on too? This is exactly the kind of statement that annoys me to no end. Maybe once upon a time, when I was still a teenager and living on my parents budget and had no money of my own did I wish for everything to be free, but you see, this thing called "growing up" and making your "own money" happened. Then I could see the value and joy in purchasing something to call my own. You may argue but then they make a new OS and the one I bought is no longer current and I have to shell out for the newer OS. Well, when that fancy new hardware decides to get outdated too, why don't you just go pick up the next version for free too? Oh, wait... never mind!
Go ahead and try build a system for free and see where it gets you. The OS is every bit a part of the whole system as the hard drive or the motherboard, so why then do people have issues in paying for something that's perhaps not as tangible but every bit as important? Windows, even with all its faults, is a one size fits all solution that works surprisingly well for 99% of all situations out there. I hear people complain that they need to pay X amount for windows, the OS or the thing that makes all that shiny new hardware do anything, and that its too expensive. People budget for new parts but fail to factor in the cost of an OS, and then take to forums such as these to "express" their distaste at having to pay for something, but when they spend hundreds of Dollars more on games, bits of software that will probably only be used for mere weeks, they forget about the once off cost of the thing that enables them to play those very same games.
I was guilty of using pirated copies of windows for many years, but then I said to myself, "Why spend thousands on hardware but neglect software". I now own a legit copy of Windows 8. Yes, its different to windows 7, yes the start menu is gone, but I never really used it to begin with, not since windows XP anyway. I am a software developer, and am definitely one of those so called "Power Users", and it took me all of 10 minutes to figure out the OS, get on with my day and move on. I cant even think of moving back to Windows 7 full time (I use it at work occasionally) as it seems somehow foreign to me now, but I digress...
Moan all you want about why you need to pay for an OS, but then don't buy all those legit games, or any software for that matter, because you are just being hypocritical.