Hi,
I am using Linux (Mandriva) since 2005/6, recently I installed Powerpack 2011 and since I face several problems such as damaged sound, I am considering switching to another Distro, I use Gnome 2.32.1 amd I like it's theme and resolution, so I want it to have this version of Gnome.

I am not a Linux expert since I use few linux applications such as gcc/g++, emacs, firefox, evince, mplayer, xine... .

So what do you recommend ??

Thanks,

If you like GNOME 2 and you aren't a Linux geek, you might want to go with Linux Mint 13 MATE Edition.
It features MATE desktop which uses the source code of GNOME 2 where gnome left off to gnome 3.

Mint is a Ubuntu-based distro. It has the deb package manager. Have fun! XD

Some apps you listed is not built-in, but, you can use: apt-get, software center, etc.

There is no such thing as the best linux distro.

If you like Gnome 2.x, you might also try Fuduntu.

2 members found this post helpful.

Yeah, I was just about to say that there is no "best distro". It actually depends on your taste (What you like).
Each distro has its own taste. Some are similar but some are unique.

I was in such a hurry, that's why i didn't say that.

I agree with sycamorex.

Fuduntu may or may not be the "best" distro, but it's the only one I know that's committed to keeping the obsolete Gnome 2.32 alive indefinitely. Highly recommended for that reason.

Otherwise you can look into a desktop environment such as MATE that provides a Gnome-2-like experience, or branch out into something different like KDE, Xfce, Unity, LXDE, etc..

2 members found this post helpful.

I was expecting you to recommend a more famous distro like Debian, Fedora,openSuse, what are the disadvantages of those ??
How about Debian for example? I am searching for a more reliable distro.
I have no experience with any other environment other than KDE and Gnome.
Thnx,

Debian uses stable but old version of stuff, it can be outdated which means that it might not support new hardware as much as ubuntu, etc.

Debian focuses more on server which uses stable and reliable stuff.

How about Fedora Core ? and openSuse? I managed to solve most issue with Mandriva Powerpack 2011 except the sound, if I'll fix that also then I'll keep the Powerpack 2011.

Thanks,

What about them?

Here's a comparison of the Top 10, they are all pretty good in my opinion: http://distrowatch.com/dwres.php?resource=major

Do they support new hardware? are they suitable for not too much Linux experts? are they stable,
For what purposes they are much suited ??

Well, Obviously,

Not:
* Fedora Core.
But, These do support new hardware and may suite what you need:
* Fedora.
* OpenSUSE.

If I am right, It starts to sound like a homework question.

Fedora is a bleeding edge distribution, so chances that it support the latest hardware are high. The downside is that it isn't really considered to be stable due to its bleeding edge nature.
openSuse has just released it new version 12.2, so hardware support should also be pretty good. I haven't used a Suse distribution for a long time (last one was Suse 8.0), but it seems to be stable and user-friendly, from what I can see on this forum.
Debian is a distro that is made for stability, which means that it has a longer development cycle with extensive testing. That causes that Debian is released with a bit older software and software versions in a released Debian never change (except you make use of the backport repository or third party repositories).

Regarding the hardware, the easiest way to find out is to just download a few distros, put them on USB and simply give them a try.

Fedora lied to me, I read the features page and it has the "Office Suite". I downloaded Fedora hoping it has the office suite I was expecting but, no office suite. I need to search on Google many times until I get this and that was before I joined the forums.

Have you downloaded the DVD or the CD? AFAIK, only the DVD contains an office suite.