Which operating system do you use and why?

Just out of curiorsity does Windows run inside VirtualBox or does VirtualBox run inside Windows? Or, put another way, does one install VirtualBox on a blank hard disk and then install Windows and Linux etc?

Also, out of curiosity, doesn't the use of VirtualBox (or equivalent) use up a significant amount of the PC's performance before any OS gets a look in?

I have been thinking about something like this but I have never tried it.

...R