Linux

They are very different kernels. Just to be clear the kernal is an abstraction layer that, among other things, translates machine code that your physical hardware speaks to a set of high level commands any software can interact with. This means your software does not need to be written for each new piece of hardware.

The Linux kernel is monolithic. It means everything is included in each kernel. The kernel must be configured so that you have access to the right modules you need in order to run your hardware configuration. This is usually done by the distribution packager. They try to configure a kernel that will work for the vast majority of users.

Problems with the Linux kernel generally involve people running old kernels packaged with LTS distributions when they have bleeding edge or obscure hardware. The other issues involve hardware that is rented at retail pricing. "Rented" because it is undocumented to exploit the end consumer through planned obsolescence or contains stollen, or poorly written code the company does not wish to reveal. It really means they have stollen ownership with digital exploitation. These products are often reverse engineered to work with Linux, but you results may vary. The best practice is to buy from honest companies.

By contrast, Windows is a microkernel. It only includes a very basic kernel layer and all of the drivers must be added later. Microsoft makes it easy to exploit people with garbage hardware and doesn't need to deal with maintaining the driver compatibility like Linux does. Instead they just specify a basic interface and let the end vendor do whatever they want. Windows is actually far far smaller than Linux. The whole world runs on Linux. Windows is just a consumer exploitation system. The support code base is a joke compared to Linux, but it is a system designed to make dependant users that do not understand how an operating system works at any level.