The madPenguin looks at how Vista may have been a contributor to the success of Ubuntu, Linux Mint and PCLinuxOS. Quote from MadPenguin:

It is hardly a fluke that Ubuntu really began to attract former Windows users roughly around the same time as Windows Vista came out. Despite the number of Windows migrants who eventually floated back to Windows XP, the fact is that projects like Wubi make it really easy to slide into a Linux mindset.

Vista Pushes Linux Into Primetime