hay currently in not actually on Linux, im on vista . . . : / however i have read and heard alot about linux and am quite keen to try. the problem i have atm is i am not sure which version would be best for me. . .

I am looking for something that. . .
- Is similar to windows(if not ill learn to adapt), but has more freedom and lets me customize it alot more. So something a bit more advanced then vista, so i can play around with it a bit.
- A nice interface. I liked that box idea, but maybe something with 3 screens so i could run a desktop, web browser, and aps at the same time, but separately, if u know what i mean.
- Something that not loaded with unneeded junk such as games etc. I hate when computers are messy, and i like choosing my own web browser etc.
- Fast and smooth to use
- Is highly compatible with windows. So i can run docs and aps that i need/have without too much trouble

I know my brother uses gnome or something like that. It seems quite good and very easy to get the hang of, but the interface could do with some touch to make it look a lot newer and flasher.
I am also taking a few 1st year computer papers at uni. Im far from an expert, but i consider myself more capable then the average user.

any recommendations?

oh and im running a
Toshiba satellite l300
with AMD Turion X2 dual-core RM-72 at 2.10GHz, and 2GB ram
and ATI Radeon 3100 graphics card
but im looking to upgrade very soon

Download some live cd's from different distributions, and try them out.
Install linux in vmware at your windows machine and try it out.
Install linux as dual boot and try it out, use different windowmanagers, and see what you like, uninstall what you don't like/want and or use.
Use the computer from your brother, and try it out.
....
Only you can decide what is best for you.

Ubuntu. Its the most windows like distro, the easiest to learn. There is tons of support for it and its compatible with a lot of hardware.

if you can type
$sudo apt-get install whatever
You can probably learn Ubuntu. And if you can click on a .deb file you're a shoe in also.

It seems like you're not that into development or programming, what you need is something that can replace windows.

There are many linux distributions (distros) available checkout http://www.distrowatch.com . Different distros are focused on some use (Most distros are all purpose, some gives importance to something)

One of the famous and most user-friendly would be Ubuntu

There's something else you should understand

There are mainly two desktop envronments avilable in linux (ofcourse there are many others too): KDE and Gnome

Look and feel depends on them, for maximum customization, I personally prefer KDE and also it is more windows-like.
Gnome, I think would be more simple than KDE

Choose something that suits you, there are a lot, really lot of distros to choose from

best regards

Thanks heaps, great site btw

thanks heaps, im looking further into it atm.
and i was planning on dual booting it as alot of my uni work is with office, and i play a few windows only games

Every distribution has an iso file for download.
Burn t to CD, and start the install.
In general everything is included.
You can however choose to install different windowmanagers, which you can use when you want,
just select the WM you want to use.
Therefore, start with live CD's to get the hang of it, they boot and run from CD, or use vmware.
Some reading
http://www.linux.ie/newusers/beginners-linux-guide/
and
http://www.google.com

You can use open office
http://www.openoffice.org/

Most of the distros (like Ubuntu, fedora, opensuse etc) includes desktop managers, you don't need to install them.

Checkout http://www.distrowatch.com/ it's got info about every distros inclusions (also contains info about versions, desktop, pre-installed softwares, etc)

Just about every distro comes with several desktop managers that you can choose during install.

For example I am in slackware, it comes with kde, xfce, fluxbox, blackbox, and 3 i cant remember the names.

Ubuntu comes with gnome and if you install kde it becomes kubuntu and if you install xfce it becomes xubuntu.

1 last thing (hopefully), was just about to get ubuntu which comes with gnome installed. is there a 64bit install or does ot only come in 32bit?

Ubuntu is available for PC, 64-Bit PC and Intel-based Mac architectures. At least 256 MB of RAM is required to run the alternate install CD (384MB of RAM is required to use the live CD based installer). Install requires at least 4 GB of disk space.

http://www.ubuntu.com/products/WhatI...desktopedition
http://www.ubuntu.com/GetUbuntu/download

k thanks everyone for your comments, its helped me alot. and sorry if you get these questions all the time

If your question is answered, and/or the problem is solved, you can mark the thread solved.

Regards