On the no Linux for games issue:
I run Slackware-current on my main box, with Windows 98 running in a virtual machine. What this means is that I can play all my Windows games with only a fairly minor performance hit -- this box is way overpowered
-- and that when Windows crashes, which not just a sometime thing, the box stays up! It just crashes the virtual machine.
Anyway, it's no good for Doom 3 or something that hardcore, but most games run splendidly...