I'm using SUSE 7.3 professonal for over 2 years. The main problem I have is that it is out-dated (of course) and not all the software i download for linux works.
The other problem I have with my linux box is the hardware it's self. The machien is a 5 yr old home built computer made from even older parts( one of the harddrives has been through at least two other computers)
My experence with SUSE hasn't been all pain. It is still better than windows for things like learning to program and for teaching you self about running a web server.
Since you were thinking about buying a newer version and your computer probably isn't as ancient as mine, you experince with SUSE would most likely be much better than mine.