I very much want to try a Linux operating sysytem, as a way to become independant from Microsoft and Apple. In looking around, there seems to be a dizzying amount of Linus iterations available, and I have no idea where to start.

Hello

I'd recommend trying Mint Linux, or maybe OpenSuse.

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i guess linux-mint would be good since it has audio/video codecs and flash installed by default (though technically illigal in the us).

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Mint or Opensuse are good
Mint is in the Debian family
OpenSUSE is mostly in the RPM redhat family

BUT "Ladycog" you will need to put in time to LEARN something new

i am guessing you are about 16 to 18
you used windows for 10+ ??? years

are you a Microsoft "point and click" drone
or a windows "power user"
as in can you hack the windows system registry

or do you not know what " cmd.exe" and "regedit.exe" are

Hello, Ladycog. It's wonderful that you're thinking of trying Linux, and your question about how to begin is very logical, since there's a lot of "Linux" out there. Could you share what you're hoping to do with Linux and use it for? If you're aiming for a fairly typical desktop or laptop system for surfing the internet and playing music and so forth, I agree with the other respondents who suggested Linux Mint. You can download the operating system directly from the linuxmint.com website. I'd suggest either the Mate or Cinnamon varieties, or perhaps Linux Mint Debian Edition. For music, I think Mint comes with Banshee, and you'll also have Firefox, but downloading other software is easy if you have other preferences.

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You could try PClinuxOS or Pinguy. They're both excellent distros for newbies.
http://www.pclinuxos.com
http://pinguyos.com/

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If you want to get right to using, I'd recommend Mint. It's a fine distro.

There will be a learning curve. Linux is not harder than Windows, but it is different. Expect it to be different.

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Hi -

10-15 years ago, most people would probably recommend Redhat or SusE. 2-5 years ago, the most common answer would probably have been Ubuntu. At the moment, Mint seems to be a popular recommendation for beginners.

Each of these distros are still alive and well today, and each would make an excellent choice for a "first distro".

Suggestion:

Definitely consider Ubuntu, and definitely take a look at this link: Which-linux-distro-is-better-for-beginners

But most important: Have fun!

IMHO...

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I usually recommend my distro Debian, but out of curiosity I installed LMDE & it just worked even the wireless that I have to install from non-free repos in debian.

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Hi, I am new to Linux and have found that Mepis 11, Ubuntu 12.04 LTS work for me.
Everything works, all the time, easy to install.
Tried over 60 Distro's over the past few weeks, none work as good, for me, as the above.
Yet to try Debian, thats next on list.


Cheers

Biff

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Mint is good- but just plain old Debian (On which Mint is based) is even better....and these days, it comes ready to use, with codecs and everything. And it "just works". I had switched from Windows to Ubuntu 3 years ago (DON'T go near Ubuntu now...it's changed, and is now a Hellish clone of Windows!) and have just switched from Ubuntu to Debian....and the current Debian was actually easier to install and set-up than Ubuntu (which is hailed as a beginner's distro)...and it just plain worked...with no futzing. Internet and everything, worked right from the git-go! And believe me...I may have switched to Linux 3 years ago, but I'm still a clueless noob (That's the trouble with these "easy" user-friendly distros... they work so well, that one is not really forced to learn anything...).

And you'll never out-grow Debian. It's easy enough for a noob...and yet powerful enough for the pros.

You can install Debian, and take five minutes to click around and explore, and you'll be right at home with it. In my opinion, these user-friendly modern Linux distros are EASIER to use than Windows.

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i'll throw fedora into the ring becuz my opinion is that the live-usb creator is the easiest i've come across:
https://fedorahosted.org/liveusb-creator/

i'm sure to get many responses about its only supported for 6 months and your cpu will blow up after that countdown expires but i like it none the less.

my recomendation is for you to try a few live-usb's until you settle on the one you like (live-usb's are good since you dont have to mess with your system to install it).

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I am the newest of the new probubly and hope it is ok here to post this. Apologies if not. I went to Ubuntu less than a year ago. Liked it from Windows but had a few issues with the Unity interface. Was running 12.04 LTS. After searchung around I found Linux Mint 15, Olivia, Cinnamon. Love it as a newbee and share it with others. Myself, I still forget how to update the clamtk engine. lol. All in all just go Linux and enjoy it.

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Ubuntu or Mint, give them both a spin from live dvd or usb, and then decide which you like better.

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If you want to learn from scratch, Slackware is great.

If you don't care about learning from scratch, but gradually, perhaps Linux Mint KDE and Mageia are better options.

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