Can attest. Used Linux as primary OS for last 2-3 years in college, then got a job doing development on Linux, then worked for a Linux startup in early 2000's (we hired a couple ex Loki employees). Linux on the desktop has been a roller-coaster movement since not long after it's inception, likely around the time KDE and Gnome were released with some level of maturity. There was always the ported desktop managers but I don't think it's had much viability for dominance until OpenOffice came along.