I am new to linux and I would like to know which distro would be best for use with Virtual PC 2004. I will be using it for knowledge in wireless security (cracking WEP, setting up wireless networks etc.), but there are so many distrobutions I am uncertain which would be best for my needs. If someone can give me a recommendation on a distro it would be very appreciated.

P.S I am also new to wireless security as well, and the reason I am using linux is for networking purposes.

Thank You,
Kiasta

Think you will end up in Debian (it's got all you need and more), but maybe start with some distro that's a bit less work with (deb-package-based, though) if you are quite unfamiliar with the way to work with Linux/deb. Maybe someone has got a more precise advice for you, else try some Debian experimenting, make a few reinstallations (yes!), end up with etch/server/kde installation, probably. Good luck!

All Linux Distributions have the potential to serve your purpose.

Perhaps a look at some of the Distro reviews at Distrowatch.com will point you in the right direction.

Thanks for the advice!

I guess I should have posted the specs to my laptop

Intel Centrino 1.86 Ghz Processor
2GB RAM
80GB HD
256MB Nvidia Quadro FX go1400 Graphics Card
Intel PRO/Wireless 2200BG Card
Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit Ethernet Card
Windows XP Pro SP2


But im mainly going to use Virtual PC 2004 to play around with linux, hopefully the distros are compatible.

I would suggest BackTrack... it's a liveCD, specifically for the purpose of network security/penetration testing, with all the tools pre-installed for cracking WEP and such. BackTrack is the name of the new project from the merger of Auditor LiveCD and WHAX(formerly Whoppix).

http://www.remote-exploit.org/index.php/Main_Page

That way you don't have to install anything to the hard drive... but it is possible to install it.

I shall try BackTrack however I can't seem to connect to the URL you posted, but I have tried the Auditor Live CD (downloaded last night) it works fine as a live CD but when I install it to the HD it just wont work, I released the auditor CD in Virtual PC then it crashed and froze up so I restarted it and it just hangs on a black screen right after the bios diagnostics, i checked the size of the virtual HD and it had around 2.8 gigs (i'm not quite sure if that number was accurate as I deleted it last night) so maybe it's a problem with Virtual PC. Well I will have to play around with this thing a little bit more I guess. Oh and another thing, the time runs extremely fast for some reason, it runs maybe 3 times faster than normal, if there is anyone that has some advise on how to fix that it would be much appreciated.