Why are computer manufacturers forcing Vista??

Today I purchased a shiny new Dell Inspiron 531. Unfortunately, Dell shipped it with Windows Vista installed and no option to switch to XP. So I did what anyone else would do in my situation: promptly format the drive and install XP!

Installation finished, on to the Dell Support website and UGH, network card is not recognized. What a pain! So now I have to go to another computer and download the damn drivers and then somehow transfer them to the new computer. To me this is unbelievable that even in 2007 Microsoft still hasn't learned to use a network card instantly.

With that frustration aside, there I was browsing Dell support website. I found my Dell Inspiron 531S and went to the drivers download page. Clicked over to the Windows XP drivers, and .... where is the network driver? Apparently they have none, is this a joke?!

DELL - WHY ARE YOU SHIPPING WITH VISTA ONLY???? Give your customers the option to get XP instead. I do notice that they allow certain 'special' systems to come preloaded with XP, but why not just allow any of them to come with XP. Even better, why not supply more computers with Ubuntu?

Microsoft - WHY DO YOU SUCK SO BAD? Why is it that even after having cornered the market for so many years and BILLIONS in revenue, you still can't get it right? Your company represents just about every thing people HATE about computers. No wonder Apple and Linux are growing so quickly and have so many loyal followers. Your software is so terrible, even those who use pirated versions are disappointed!

I really don't understand why computer manufacturers are selling Vista. It seems most everyone I know is starting to hate it more and more. The little stupid effects that play all over the screen lose their novelty after 5 minutes and then you're just left with a crappy operating system. Could it possibly be cheaper for them to sell Vista vs XP? Does Microsoft just give away licenses for their new software and then charge more for old software?