Linux vs. Windows

Good afternoon, Gurus! :wave:

I am in my first year of Computer Science classes, and the first day into class my Foundations of CS prof recommended becoming familiar with a Linux system. I was already considering the purchase of a netbook, as my current laptop is very bulky and a pain to transport in between classes. Would it be functional to purchase a Linux based netbook, such as the ASUS X201E that comes preloaded with Ubuntu? I wouldn't use it much for C++ as our department prefers using Microsoft Visual Studio, but I could use it for note-taking, web browsing, email and to learn Java. Does anyone have any useful comments or incites that could be useful to me? Any suggestions about purchasing a netbook?

Side note - would it be possible to set up a netbook like the ASUS for dual boot mode Linux/Windows?

Thank you in advance! :D