[grumpydba]

Yes, and they are plenty fast. The API could be more elegant, but it works fine. Mysql for example uses io_submit. So do oracle, sybase. It's just a matter of developer comfort. They work around it for us. Deployment-wise, linux runs circles around windows.

[pjmlp]

Having worked in several Java/.NET shops not everyone on our IT would agree with that, specially how easy it is to manage cluster deployments with AD.