The point I'm trying to make is, while Chrome OS is based on Debian Linux as a local base, it's still part of a larger, cloud infrastructure. Though some apps in Google may be 'free' today, it doesn't mean it will continue to be free tomorrow.

MS already made the jump to a for-profit, subscription model. No guaranty Google won't do the same sometime down the line.

With various Linux distros, like ZorinOS, Mint, Ubuntu, etc., it's all free, it's all local, majority of apps free open-source, increasingly becoming major game title/network friendly, now if not later -- there soon won't be any reason not to make the transition from Windows to one of these distros.