I work at a Windows shop and have a few coworkers who prefer linux. I run Debian at home and occassionally need to help the non windows guys with windows specific issues. What's important is that you are able to produce as much on a non windows environment as a windows environment, and that you don't have to tap resources in order to do so.
Whether you run in a vm, whether it's windows, osx, arch-linux, gnome, mint, etc is really just semantic.
Whether you run in a vm, whether it's windows, osx, arch-linux, gnome, mint, etc is really just semantic.