When you tell OS X to shut up, it does. (It phones home as much as you heard or maybe even more so, but you can stop it from doing so too.) Dunno about Windows, I avoid using it for everything besides 3D or LabVIEW.
Could you explain why you wouldn't consider Linux for the desktop? Wine isn't horrible, if you want Windows compatibility, and it offers a huge range of functionality otherwise. It's the best platform for compiling and running stuff, for sure.
Could you explain why you wouldn't consider Linux for the desktop? Wine isn't horrible, if you want Windows compatibility, and it offers a huge range of functionality otherwise. It's the best platform for compiling and running stuff, for sure.