Hi, I've nEver used Linux can someone spec me a compatible distro?
 

Ok hi guys, I have never used Linux before all I know about it is it's got a penguin mascot so I am here because windows can't fulfill my needs and I need a distro that is compatible with my system. It needs to see and use 4 CPU's 16 cores later maybe double that. I don't want it chucked full of rubish this will be a server workstation. Can anyone suggest something?

a server workstation? what is that??

You've given precious little information to go on here, It sounds like it's a beefy enough box, so pick whatever 64bit OS you feel like. We've not a clue what you want to do with it, so I don't see how we can recommend much more besides that.

Only addition to that is that when someone asks such a vague question, they are normally implicitly best off with Ubuntu or Mint, as they are very polished and newbie friendly.

What's vague about it? I need a distro that supports at least 4 CPU's windows 7 only supports 2

Hmm, well I suppose if you're coming from a crippled licensed world it might seem clearer. There are no realistic restrictions on how many CPU's a Linux system will use. There are some high end enterprise licensing scenarios where this can become relevant, but not here. You can run the bog standard Ubuntu release on a 64 core system just fine. The normal things people require compatability with is graphics cards and freaky USB devices.

<corn>welcome to a world without limits</corn>

If you are planning to run it as a server I heard CentOS does well as server. If you are looking for a friendly desktop I heard Linux Mint supersedes its father Ubuntu.

Since the majority of Linux Distros are free of cost you should download as many as you want and test them as LiveCDs in your computer. Choose and install the one you like best.

Good luck to you.

The best solution to your problem is to use Linux as soon as possible, then you will no longer be able to say "I have never used Linux before." :)

And the easiest way to use Linux as soon as possible is to create a Live CD or Live USB of Ubuntu, Mint, Fedora, etc. and evaluate it in "Live" mode (with no change to your computer).

Unless you have some very exotic hardware, hardware compatibility is not as important when choosing a distro as your own preferences.

These sites may illustrate the sort of "preferences" to consider.

• http://www.linux-chooser.com/
• http://desktoplinuxathome.com/distro.html
• http://www.zegeniestudios.net/ldc/