Mystic38
Went through putting Ubuntu onto a desktop and a laptop during the winter, with poor (PC) and terrible (laptop) results..despite about 100hrs over a month trying to resolve multiple issues. A complete and utter waste of time.
 
$99 for a windows license for about 5 years viable use is peanuts.

Heck I paid 40 bucks for my Windows 8. For that I got Windows 8 32 and 64 bit on DVDs. Now its at 8.1.1 without cost or painful issues. Plus all my hardware is supported. I flirted with Ubuntu and another distro that were cool but did nothing except word processing. But wouldn't print. 
 
I agree with Jim that one needs to be a programmer to get the most out of Linux.  
 
 

The issue is not the operating system it is the customer base to pay for application development. After all Apple OS is a Unix/Linux variant, and it is clearly possible to write first class audio applications to run in that environment. Currently there are a lot of mature products that run under Windows. I expect that in time there may be for Linux as well. It should not be that difficult for the Apple developers to port to a version of Linux that does not require buying an overpriced computer.

slartabartfast
The issue is not the operating system it is the customer base to pay for application development. After all Apple OS is a Unix/Linux variant, and it is clearly possible to write first class audio applications to run in that environment. Currently there are a lot of mature products that run under Windows. I expect that in time there may be for Linux as well. It should not be that difficult for the Apple developers to port to a version of Linux that does not require buying an overpriced computer.

I don't know that its the same situation. Apple uses the Unix model but theirs is their own version. Windows started out as an add on to DOS which came from CP/M. Its very hard to invent a new OS not because it can't be done but because it has to have certain characteristics that all OSs share. When those are already there in current OSs it makes little sense to invent the wheel over again. 
 
Unix and Linux have been around a long time and have not made much inroads into the graphics or audio/video area of computing. Not to mention games. Because of low demand there is slow development for either and a lot of the working hard core area is in one off custom programing for big business. Banks, auto companies, medical uses and so on is where a lot of Unix and Linux is being used. 
 
The small studio is not being supported by either. Where Apple and MS are very much in the small studio. This can happen because of the scale they both enjoy.
 
We are not going to see a major adoption of Linux for DAW use anytime soon or near future.
 
Linux is almost prohibited from this sort development due to its open source nature. Unix is too darn expensive. That leaves Apple and MS.   
 
 
   

According to the website, Bitwig Studio runs on all platforms--Windows, Apple and Linux.
As I see it, it appears to be using the same coding (language/techniques) as Reaper.
If so, this will make it very efficient as it runs but raw and un-settled for many areas for someone who requires production and certainty as a business venture.
It has some very nice things which can be done, especially for the nerdy quick-witted.
Also appealing for me is this one factor; 
Each note in the midi editor as a fully controllable block. As one can take a particular note in a chord and vary its volume/pan as such; Super Expression. Not saying I cannot do the same in Sonar which requires more steps to work it out. 

I couldn't be bothered looking into bitwig for 2 reasons..
1 no rewire
2 it's more mature enough yet for me to want to fork out that much. they should have been worried more about grabbing future customers at this point, even if it cost them profits short term.. just my 2 cents.
 

I use this...
http://ubuntustudio.org/
 
I use it with a Class Compliant USB interface and it works fine.
 
I mostly use it for practicing when I'm traveling. I install Ubuntu Studio on a removable hard drive that I keep in my work laptop bag. I boot to it at lunch. I used it to watch Craig Anderton's webcast at a local Silver Diner. It's nice to be able to boot your work laptop to your own OS.
 
I have my USB hard drive partitioned with a FAT partition for data and a EXT4 partition for Ubuntu Studio. That way I can format the Linux partition and re-install without worrying about stuff I want to keep. I used the gparted app to do the partitioning.
 
I don't know why people get so fussy about the Linux thing. Couldn't be easier. You install an OS Pre-Tuned for recording music. It comes with tons of free software and plugins.
 
I use Ardour to record.

So I just used Ubuntu for the last 2 hours or so.
 
I monitored my sound through the RME so there was 0 latency. It is hard that there isn't a TotalMix controller for the RME within Linux. I have to have it kinda pre-set for what I'm going to do... or use a separate pre so I don't have to use the on-board pres. What do I mean? I can't turn phantom power on and off from the front of the interface. If I have it on when I start, I'm good to go, but if I need to turn it on or off, I'm kinda hosed without plugging the interface into a Windows/Mac computer.
 
The reported latency at 256 sample buffer in Sonar is 13 ms and in Linux Ubuntu Ardour it's 23 ms.
 
I used a number of FX. It's kinda cool. They report the latency in samples per effect. I put an EQ and Amp Sim on. All worked fine and sounded pretty good. I added a ring modulator and after tweaking some params I got a bad clicking sound. I bypassed and the clicking went away. Might be a feature. :-)
 
To tell the truth, I really love using Ardour for practicing. It makes me very portable and using Linux Ubuntu Studio means I don't ever have to buy a laptop as long as I have job. I can go to a friend's house and make a recording bringing just the hard drive and my interface. I don't have to bring a computer! I can use my friend's PC!
 
Smiles. I just think it's awesome. I give away Linux hard drives for presents to my friends. :-) I'd give one to you if I could.

I should mention I was using Ubuntu Studio 14.04 tonight. I upgraded last night.
 
Over the weekend, I was visiting my in-laws and using Linux. On Sunday, I let it try to upgrade from v13 to v14. At one point I got a 'it's time to restart' window. I could see another progress bar, but I figured it might wait to continue until the re-boot. No such luck. ha ha. I restarted and killed the install.
 
But the beautiful thing was that it was so easy to recover. I just downloaded the latest version, formatted the partition and installed. I will say I do some breath holding as I format partitions using my work laptop. It hasn't gone wrong yet, but I'm always very careful not to format my work PC. :-)
 
I've been through 4 or 5 versions of Ubuntu Studio. I've been using Linux longer than that. I will say it's gotten easier. At first it helped to understand a thing called Jack which is like an internal Audio Router so you can route audio between applications inside Linux. Now, you really don't need to understand Jack. You just install. Start it. Open Ardour with your Class Compliant Interface plugged in and add tracks. you immediately see the meters bouncing. Arm for record, click record then play and you're off the to the races.
 
You don't have to install the DAW software separately from the OS. It's all one well integrated thing. Oh, and it does Video and Pictures too. You can watch Netflix. Movies on the DVD drive. Install any software you want. Surf the web. All the usual stuff. 

And in this thread people have asserted you have to be a computer guy to do this. I admit I use computers for a living. I've been scripting one thing or another since age 10.
 
I encourage you to try it. Be the first guy on your block!