Tobi switching is indeed some kind of milestone. :)

My subjective benchmark for the year of the Linux desktop is if my dad considers one the next time he buys a PC from Best Buy. Rails developers switching en masse definitely will push us toward that.

It's not the year of the Linux desktop just because your billionaire buddy is using it. If anything, it's been the year of the Linux desktop for many of us for years, you're all late to the party.