as a total newbie to linux i would like to know which is the easiest to install and understand knowing that i will have to install my broadband and printer once up and running.

ubuntu,fedora

My vote is Ubuntu as well. Second to that would be Fedora.

Whether you have to install broadband and printer after the initial install is not a given. It depends on the hardware and what distribution you are installing.

For example my most recent installs were Debian 4.0 and CentOS 5.0. Both recognized and configured all of my hardware on the initial install including my broadband and my printer.

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Steve Stites

The absolute easiest, in my opinion, is ubuntu.

I would also like to second Fedora. Fedora is really nice and works well, but due to US copyright constraints, it is harder to get things like mp3 and dvd working. But it is far from impossible (hint, search for livna in google)

you might also want to try PCLinuxOS. It also depends on your hardware. Generally I'd agree that Ubuntu may be slightly more user-friendly than Fedora, but in my case, for example, I couldn't get wireless working under the latest ubuntu, while fedora 9 recognised and configured my wifi automatically. Install them all (ubuntu/fedora/pclinuxos and you'll see which one will work best for you.

My vote for Ubuntu.

I've also had good luck with hardware detection and setting up my internet connection (broadband using DHCP and autodetecting my ISP) with the following distros running as liveCDs as well as installed:

Knoppix
Kanotix
PCLinuxOS

I've also found them to be casy to install

I don't know if they set up a default printer because I've never used it. I set up custom printer definitions.
Setting up printers is quite easy using CUPS. I have one physical printer but six virtual printers defined for different printing tasks. When it comes time to print, I select the appropriate "printer" for the task at hand.

Come to think of it, they're all defined for portrait mode. I could just as easily set up six more for landscape mode.

ya i'm voting for ubuntu,every options r there,then fedora

try this again....

as a fellow noob I would like to vote for Ubuntu as well.
Knoppix seems pretty good to, and I've read that it has excellent hardware detection.