need help getting started - Brand new

[rhythmiccycle]

I've never used linux before, and i want to try it out, on my PC.

if possible i would like to have my computer boot off of a usb thumb-drive, that has linux installed.

if thats not possible i would settle for a dual Boot.

i guess i want to use redhat, i don't really know the difference, i just red in the FAQ that redhat has has a lot of people using it and I can find alot of help.

right now I'm using windows XP, so I would want something that works similar to that.


I just want to know,

what do i need to do?
What is the name of the software I need to get to install it on my computer?

[oz]

Welcome to the forums!

You can check the link in my signature for lots of good information on getting started with Linux. You'll also find a couple of quizzes there that will help you to pick your first distribution. Many distributions are now available as a liveCD, so you simply boot the CD to test the distro. If you should like what you see, you can install it to the hard drive as a stand alone OS, or install it along side another OS to have a dual-boot option.

Hope you will have fun with Linux!

[MikeTbob]

I agree, try a couple of LiveCD's and if you decide you really want to try it, then you can either install it directly to the hard drive or a USB device, if the machine supports boot from USB.

[rokytnji]

And read up on these 2 sites

UNetbootin - Homepage and Downloads

Boot and run Linux from a USB flash memory stick | USB Pen Drive Linux

[jayd512]

Welcome to LinuxForums!

I'm with everybody else. Check the link in ozar's sig, and let us know which way you go!
By the way,I've not booted from USB, but take a look into Unetbootin. roky gave the link to it, and I can say, from experience, that it works quite nicely with XP.

[rhythmiccycle]

thanks for the help, I got a lot of reading to do,

i think i'm going to try running ubuntu, first.

[jayd512]

Ubuntu is a pretty good choice for newer users. Do let us know how it goes!