Well, I am not suggesting that MEPIS isn't user friendly--how could such a "warm and fuzzy" distro not be?--but I respectfully claim that the most user-friendly distro is Xandros.

That might be it, I heard that Lindows is also very user-friendly -- however both Xandros and Lindows don't pass my test: they both have subscription for getting programs and upgrades -- which for some people is value-added, I don't contest that, but for me it means to be tied up with some specific (paid) repos.

I much rather prefer Debian or Ubuntu repos. (Xandros can update from Debian repos, I know it was my first distro, but as anyone on Xandros forums knows: things will break if you install from Debian -- so you ended up being tied up to a limited repository for which you need to pay: not nice (in my view)

No rpm hell on rpm based systems if you use a package manager such as apt, yum, urpmi or smart. Debian suffers dependency problems if you try to install individual *.debs using dpkg so dependency hell is not limited to rpm based distros.

I installed Mepis just yesterday, without any problem I have to say, it was easy, smooth and quick. When I installed Kubuntu it wasn't the same, it said it had some bugs.
I don't see the problem in a nice-looking desktop, why things have to be ugly?
But I do agree about the fish tank on the toolbar, is it possible to hide it?

yes right click on taskbar and click remove from panel

other than that everything else here seems to be a whine about the default layout, or lack of knowledge about how linux works.[/QUOTE]


I don't do a lot of gaming, I burn CD's and DVD's. I have WinME on one hard drive, and SimplyMepis on another. I am a newbie who has tried many Linux OS's and I found SimplyMepis to be the most friendly to me with the programs that I need. I also like Ubuntu.
The "lack of knowledge about how linux works" comment is not fair in a forum. Most of us are here trying to get help. I have a lack of knowledge of Linux. I am still trying to learn it, and don't consider myself to be a novice in any way to a computer, and most people that I know think that I am pretty smart when it comes to computers.
How about remembering that you must know some code to run Linux in just about every distribution, and realize that you had to learn it at some point.
Now a phrase that I have always lived by, "If you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem".
Insults only push people away.
Although I don't agree with people insulting a program that is free as compared to any Windows OS, I don't agree with someone who is so familiar with the Linux Program, or a software developer who know code insulting a newbie. Do you remember what a Newbie is? Do you remember when you first got into Linux?
I have questions, but won't ask because I am a newbie, and have lack of knowledge about Linux!...I'll just lurk and hopefully someone else will ask the question I have.

okay, perhaps that came off a bit harsh, basicly what i meant by the "lack of how linux" works part is that your going to encounter problems like this in any distro, and you do have to learn a bit to use linux. I am more than willing to give help to any who asks, but threads like these serve no purpose but to drag linux throught the mud. Thats all i meant about that.

I did not try to be harsh in my last post either. I simply wanted to state that there is code that Linux users need to know in order to use Linux correctly, and most of us NEWBIES don't know or understand it.
Is there a way to get the Linux Distros more user friendly to those of us who are more familiar with Windows? I am a WinME user who refused to pay another $120 for XP, and with Vista getting ready to come out, I will not pay a bundle for it either.
I found that SimplyMepis is just about exactly what I need. I just wish that SimplyMepis and DreamLinux could merge.
As I said in my previous post, I love SimplyMepis, and turned my dad onto it. My dad uses it as a primaryOS, except for the fact that it doesn't work for his PocketPC, so he has to stick with Windows for it to work. That is the main reason I have Windows on my system, other than the fact that my wife is totally ignorant when it comes to computers and is familiar with WinME.
I would just like to see a little more user friendliness and a little less code usage.
I know these forums are here for help and ideas, and I hope that some of my posts do help with creating a better Linux.
Bill......

...and somebody else would claim that Linspire/Lindows, Lycorise or PCLOS is even more user friendly than your pick. Point is that it's all a matter of one's subjective impressions and preferences.

I prefer a stick shift to an automatic transmission...wanna arm wrestle over that for a while too?

BTW: Konqui is a KDE thing...not a MEPIS thing.

Tip-of-the-hat to AdrianTM and anticapitalista. Good to see you two over here.

I still don't know anything about Linux to be able to run something unless I click the left-right button on the mouse, or drag something somewhere.
And yeet I disagree with hap99. I mean, we're being given the opportunity to use an operating system without being just users but part of the process.
What I love in Linux is not that is free. (Of course I love this "item).
But the idea that with our questions we actually make possible a change within the software industry.
When I bought my laptop I was a total ignorant about pc. It was about a year ago.
Now I consider myself much better (even though so many times I can't find the easiest of the things... I managed to move the aquarium before I read the answer, actually, I just needed to play[read EXPLORE] with the mouse).
And yet, I sent a few questions here and still got an answer. I mean, somebody had the will to answer'em.
Still, for free.
This is totally out of the thread, I know. It ain't about MEPIS. Sorry.
But still.
What's wrong with a nice desktop view? It looks nice. It works. That's all. That's all I need.
Thanks to all the MEPIS developers.
With all my heart.
And to all Linuxers(?)

Thing about MEPIS is that it's out of the box experience is usable by anyone for what most will use a computer for.

Interface issues are easily corrected if needed for your sense of esthetics. And if you like secure then you're going to be happy.

Out of the Box usability. Not many have as good a solution. Especially considering the speed and ease of an installation.

Just to add and from a different angle.

Although Mepis is aimed at the new linux user probably coming from windoze (and IMO rightly so), it is still a distro that experienced linux users can use too.
You can strip Mepis down to its bare-bones if you like to enhance performance and speed, use the command-line over GUI, have bleeding-edge Debian Sid apps, and still be left with a solid/stable distro to suit your needs.

Seems to be a much more common issue than most think.

I DO have SimplyMepis on cd. Will I ever install it on my HDD? No.

Why? Because of that very statement: The insults to newbies.

This is why I'll stick w/Slackware.
First, you don't get that type of crud from the Slackware forum.
Second, they actually answer your posts.
Third, and most important to me, is Slackware is MINE. I can, and do, install/compile/run anything I want. None of that 'apt' or'deb' crud. I have EVERY linux program available. If I don't like something, I get rid of it. So now it's mine.

1. I doubt Mepis forums, on the whole, insult newbies as it is unashamedly a newbie distro.

2. When did you not get an answer on a Mepis forum?
Most that have questions go to the official site or MepisLovers rather than here.

3. If that's what you want, fine. Others, myself included, prefer the "crud" apt.

I vote for "crud" anytime! No patience for all that compiling stuff