Believe it or not, it may be a lot easier to get patches and updates for Linux than for any proprietary operating system! The answer to a problem often comes back within a few hours after sending a message to some newsgroup or mailing list. Moreover, drivers for Linux are usually available a few weeks after new hardware products have been introduced on the market. By contrast, hardware manufacturers release device drivers for only a few commercial operating systems, usually the Microsoft ones. Therefore, all commercial Unix variants run on a restricted subset of hardware components. With an estimated installed base of more than 12 million and growing, people who are used to certain creature features that are standard under other operating systems are starting to expect the same from Linux. As such, the demand on Linux developers is also increasing. Luckily, though, Linux has evolved under the close direction of Linus over the years, to accommodate the needs of the masses.

The whole thing about Linnux havving fewer drivers available is part of a trade off.

he thing about drivers is they run with the very highest privilages...
even on a perfect OS, a bad driver can damage hardware, cause random crashes. and system slowdowns.

in windows, you just have to hope that the developers of your hardware worked very hard on the driver, to make it bug free and perfect. you are putting your system reliability into the hands of many different people.

for example, i bought a very very cheap and nasty webcam for £5... if the cam is only £5. how much testing did the driver go through ???

in linux, the job of building drivers lies with the kernel developers. who you can trust to try there very best to keep the drivers reliable....

But if you learn, some time will have to risk you. always when one this learning ruins something but I believe that at the final the wisdom that obtained is worth but that the hardware that lost.
it is question of criterion at the final to evaluate the things according to what agrees you.
But try it, I never ruins my hardware and I Know what my hardware make me better all the works.