Should I or shouldn't I
 

I have been toying with the idea of installing Linux for several years. I am now ready to try it, I think. First I would like to know if it will work in my situation.

The computer I want to install it on (old Athlon 1900 with 1.5 gigs ram) is in my shop. I connect to the internet through a USB wireless device that connects to my home wireless router. I had it running with windows xp, but while dealing with some viruses, it became unstable. So I was thinking this would be the perfect time to try Linux.

My question is will I be able to use the USB wireless device with Linux? Not sure about the drivers needed to use it. How hard is it to connect an old printer to Linux? I am not sure of the model numbers of either of these, but could find out.

Assuming all these things are possible, what version would be he easiest for a newbie to set up and navigate.

Thanks for any help
Dan

It's safe to say, you need to tell us the model number of the wifi device and printer, if you want a meaningful answer.

Ubuntu (my first distro) and Linux Mint are the two most popular distros, and both have the reputation of being easy for beginners with a friendly online community.

But we all have different personalities, learning styles, level of experience, etc. For example some people swear by Slackware as the best choice for beginners. Here is a page that compares the top 10: http://distrowatch.com/dwres.php?resource=major

You ought to try a few live cd's. Most of the top 30 or so at distrowatch have live cd's even if they don't say they are they usually are now a days.

Hi there,

like me: I also hesitated a long time. For me, however, it was easier because I picked a separate computer for trying, while I knew my Windows PC was still there and running.

The computer specs sound fine, but I'm not sure about the USB WLAN adapter. You might want to use a wired network connection temporarily. The chances for that to work are close to 100%, while your USB adapter might make some trouble. Doesn't have to, though.

Start a search for it on the internet, using the exact brand name and type of your WLAN adapter. Maybe it works out of the box with the distro you'll choose, maybe it requires some tricks.

Depends on the printer. If it is (or was) a very common model, your chances are good; if it's an exot, you may have to use a driver for a similar type that doesn't support all features.

Ask three people, and you get four different answers. ;-)
If you got along well with XP, and you're not totally dyslexic to IT matters, Ubuntu may be a good choice. If you like fancy, colored itsy-bitsy things, maybe you'll the KDE desktop that ships with Kubuntu and SuSE. I've heard people say that Linux Mint is a fine entry level distro (but I don't know it myself).
Try a few and make up your mind. Most distros are available as Live CDs that you can test without installing them on your PC.

[X] Doc CPU

As luck would have it, a quick Google search found drivers for both the wireless device and the printer.

The shop I am going to use this in is a woodworking shop (my #1 hobby) A couple weeks ago I was in the shop working on a friends computer (my #2 hobby) I had taken my wife's desktop to the shop to take out the power supply as I needed it to try in the friends PC. After I got the wife's PC back together, I remembered the USB network device that was in the house. I bought it for someone else and it didn't work for them. I decided to give it a try and see if I could hook up the the house router. It is a couple hundred feet away, so I didn't have much hope, but to my surprise it had a very good signal.

My point to all this gibberish is that I don't really NEED this computer, but I could find many uses for it. And as I am pretty busy with the woodworking, I don't have a lot of time to mess with the computer. Which is why I would like to find the simplest version of Linux to use. I will try a couple of the live CD,s and see what works the best. Any more suggestions are welcome.

Thanks for the help
Dan

How long is a piece of string? I'd recommend a piece of string LinuxMint length. Good Luck.

Just my suggestions. There are many good ways to go:

Among Live Distros it is hard to go wrong with KNOPPIX. For a live CD it is pretty comprehensive (i.e. with plenty of networking and office apps plus system tools) and should configure nicely on this box. Once you decide to do a native install I'd recommend Salix, if only as a gateway to Slackware! ;-)

usb network device
 

Maybe Peppermint, if you can put up with the Google intrusion. It is likely to support the latest mobile broadband, etc.

Fred.

Spend an hour or so browsing through Distrowatch then choose 2 or 3 likely distros. Try them as Live CD/DVD/USBs to see if your wireless adaptor and printer works. When you've found one that works & you like it, install it and enjoy!