Does Ubuntu support mp3, wmv, DVD, etc. codecs out of the box? I'm currently using Fedora 6, which, for licensing reasons, does not include codec support for these types.

None of the above formats are supported out of the box. The same could be said about nearly every other freely distributed distribution. However, to fix that in Ubuntu, it is just as easy as editing one single file and typing a command. Please check the Ubuntu Guide to learn how to add media support:

http://ubuntuguide.org/

If you like Fedora(which is my second fav. distro), there's no reason for you to switch because of this minor issue.... Here's a couple tutorials on getting those things running on FC6....

http://www.fedorafaq.org/ Make sure FC6 is chosen at the very top.

Here's a more detailed FC6 guide, although the URL is slightly misleading, it is a bit more informative than the one above. The key thing is to make sure you add the repositories in both FAQ's, or none of the instructions will work.

http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Fedora_FC6

If you still want to switch to Ubuntu 6.10 Edgy, heres a good wiki for Edgy.
http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Ubuntu:Edgy

IGF

I wouldn't switch just because of that issue. But I'm in the phase of Linux learning where I'm ready to try different distributions to see which I like best.

Thank you, all, for your input. I'll do more reading.

Hey, when I was learning and doing a lot of "distro hopping", I probably switched several times for reasons far less than codecs..

Fedora is a good distro, so give it a chance before you blow it away. I like the *buntus better, but I can't fault anyone who goes with Fedora...

Good luck...

IGF