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Actually I've found a lot more embedded devices running embedded linux than I have Windows CE or XP embedded. You just hear a lot less about them because most people don't advertise the fact. You also won't see evidence of failure as blatant as the BSoD.

Next to QNX and vxWorks, Linux is the most robust and versatile mainstream embedded OS out there. Windows CE is primarily relegated to smartphones these days and it even sucks in that area. Windows CE is also horrible for realtime applications.

If I had to bet my life on a device just working, I'd choose vxWorks or QNX. For other situations embedded Linux would be my second choice. Embedded Linux is far more popular for network appliances than Windows CE will ever be. XP embedded sees a lot of use in kiosks and ATM's. That's about it.

I've seen a lot of Diebold Windows XP based ATM's in recent years though. Diebold's reputation has been seriously scarred because of their horrible Windows-based voting machines though.

I'd like to see someone name ONE example of a mission-critical NASA sattelite or probe running Windows CE.

Anyone who uses any Windows OS (CE or XP) for mission critical apps where lives or massive amounts of product can be put in jeopardy is seriously asking for it. They are paying twice as much for a bloated and inferior product. In fact DOS would be a better bet for embedded apps such as an ATM machine or voting machine.

And yes, DOS lives on in many embedded devices.

And BTW, MS Office is NOT the end-all be-all. I've quite successfully migrated my 200-user network to OpenOffice without a hitch. Outlook/Exchange can be replaced with a good web-based PIM/collaboration package or Lotus Notes quite easily. Or groupwise....or evolution and one of the various open source server packages. Or even more drastic, MacOS X and MacOS X Server with the iCal server.

You have choices, you're not locked in. You always had choices. You just made poor ones or your CIO made them for you and the industry has suffered a horrible backslide for the last decade with everyone losing faith in computers in general. NT was a bad path to take from the start.