Favorite Desktop Distro for New Users

[DalekClock]

I'm voting Mint as it has an easy-to-use desktop, full multimedia codecs, has a stable underlying system and has a good software choice built-in.

[danvds3]

Ubuntu has rapidly become the basis of my linux testing. When I run into problems with openSuSe, Ubuntu comes and saves the day! It just WORKS. That's what I love, it's so easy to just throw stuff on (and take it off), whether it's playing 3D games, or trying to recover fedora's xorg.conf from ubuntu, It's easy-peasy. No bugs (strings) attached. I must say, It could easily be more interesting, but it's so simple, I could get my mum to work it! ...well... she's too familiar with Windows, but you know what I mean!!!

Choose KXEduUbuntu!!?? - guys help me out here!

[Neo-Penguin]

I have tried many different distros. I first tried SuSe then I moved to Mandrake (before the name was changed to Mandriva.) A lot of distros during and after as well, including Gentoo, Red Hat (and later Fedora, etc.) My old favorite was Mandrake.

I have to say for new users, and not so new users, that Ubuntu is the way to go. I can install from source, I am able to navigate my way through dependency hell but I would rather just have the basics set up and then take it from there. Ubuntu does this for me.

I recommend Ubuntu first and then downloading Automatix, (Ubuntu CE comes with Automatix preinstalled.) With Automatix there are extra features you can install that help get the system up and running, with the basics (desktop/internet,) fast and easy. Plus Ubuntu is stable.

I have had no problem with Ubuntu and hardware detection. It runs great on newer and older computers just fine for me. (It is easier and faster to set up Ubuntu with Automatix then it is to set up Windows XP.)

Uhm, for the record, when I say older computers I don't mean something like an 8086, lol

[Dapper Dan]

Ubuntu hands down. All the way around, just a splendid distro for new users, and also good for experienced users who like to have at least one box they don't have to fiddle with too often...

[lightsycle]

Well, I finally found one that worked. Mandrake 8.1, which I've had in my binder for some years now, is the only distro that actually installed. I tried Ubuntu, opensuse, mandriva, even redhad (9.2 shrike) gave me some problem, tho I think that was a disk error, and not a software error. Mandrake is up and running, but I was wantint to try a newer version. MANDRAKE is no longer supported by MANDRIVA I think. I am currently downloading Mint. We'll see where that goes. My 3rd HD is in a removable bay, that was one of the problems for Ubuntu. The most common thing I keep getting is ACPI can't find....something, I don't remember. I remember why I chose Mandrake over Redhat. Mandrake found both my CPU's and I didn't have to recompile the kernel. I have 384MB of RAM for those who are wondering. Actual RAM check shown 393MB 128x2 + 64x2. It is an older MOBO that has to have the RAM in matching pairs. I have other HD's and will try, maybe another cofiguration. Right now I have my main HDC with 2 HD's and my 2nd HDC with DVD ROM and removable HD in that order as M&S. I do have anther controller card that is not being used, maybe I'mm put the HD on that and put my CDR back...who know. Hey if everything worked when you tried it you'd never learn anything, would you?

[Neo-Penguin]

I haven't used this in a couple of years, but give Puppy Linux a try. First see if it works as a livecd then try it has an HD install. I know that worked well on an older computer of mine, might work for you. (I am pretty sure you can install Puppy Linux to the hard drive..... If I am wrong then just ignore me, been a long day and my mind took a couple hours off, lol.)

Also DSL (Damn Small Linux,) may work to.

[orcbanelinux]

I think slackware is a good way to learn how to find your way around linux

[Kojak]

I gave Mandriva my vote, due to its superb installer and partitioner (nobody has better tools yet in this department). PCLinuxOS lacks enough international language support to grab the top spot. Ubuntu and Suse are also very good for newcomers but are not yet there (Suses installer is too complex, Ubuntus installer is not that intuitive and still quirky at times).

Fedora is performing well, but its FOSS nature and rapid development make it more of a distro for experienced users imho.

[lightsycle]

I have several distro's, all of which I tried to install. RedHat Shrike would have worked, but I remember it being somewhat boring. Mandrake 8.1 worked also, but I have had that running in the past, and wanted to move on. Neither Mandriva nor Suse 10.2 would work because of an ACPI error, and I tried several times, with different options. I even re-DL'd it again for fear I had a bad copy. The only one I was able to successfully install was Suse 9.2, and it doesn't come with nmap, and I couldnt get that player, what is it barbaras something-or-another, to install it, and it wouldn't shut down from the GUI I would have to use the console to shut down, and the updates wouldn't work, either. I don't know that that was such a big thing, but I was wanting to play around with some of the newer versions. I did have a HW problem that I got sorted out. Bad HD that was gumming up everything. I just wiped it and installed win2k3 server. I tried Uduntu, Mint, Fedora I looked into, but are they crazy? it is like 4 DVD size files! I even tried Slackware 10.somehtin I think. They all gave me the same ACPI error. I'm running a Supermicro dual PIII. One is 750, the other 700, but BIOS reports 2 700's, so I guess the other one slows to match. Just did a BIOS flash, and windows will not turn it off instead of me having to do it manually.

Suse was very east to install, but I wanted to see what Mandrake had morphed into. My whole reason for wanting to use Linux is to see if I could do everything that I could do in XP.

[RobinVossen]

I prefer LFS/Gentoo/Arch Linux.. ^^