Hi,

I've already been asking questions on online forums, reading the answers and looking some info up in the web in order to choose the distro that I will install on my new computer.

In a nutshell, what I've tried so far as distro and liked (or hated) is:
+ Turbolinux (1998 - 2001) : loved it
+ SuSE 9.3 (2005-2006) : loved it at first - config is easy, package management is simple. Then figured out that it was a bad idea to install the x64 version (not everything runs, and packages for x64 were harder to come by). Tried to compile some apps for which no x64 binary was available (no luck there, I could compile maybe one app in 10).
+ Debian Sarge (on a Pegasos PowerPC) : loved it, but it came pre-installed and configured on the computer (and heard that it can be a pain to install and setup).

Now there is a lot of people that are recommending me Ubuntu. Some here come the questions:
1) Is it EASY to install and configure? Is is done by text files or GUIs?
2) What about package management?
3) Do you have big package repositories?
4) What about proprietary software (nVidia drivers, acrobat reader, etc.)? Are they simple to set up?
5) Do you have an automount feature for removable media (like SuSE) or do you have to go through the shell and type "mount ...."?

Thanks a lot!

Kind regards,

Gonzalo

Ubuntu is very easy to install-as long as you are not wanting it to repartition Window's partition. (anotherwords-windows doesnt like people stealing from it). If you want to do it a really good way, clear your whole drive w/Ubuntu (it deletes all partitions so back up) and then use the GParted tool (you can find it at distrowatch.com) and resize it's partition. as far as the installation, you can do it in command line-like or in 'oem' mode. Oem is more of a graphical installation (looks kinda like a BIOS) and looks similar to the beginning stages of a windows installation. the installation is pretty much self explanitory. Once your computer reboots, it ejects the CD and remember to login as "oem" and use your pre-specified password that you gave it during the installation. once you are logged in, go to a terminal and type: 'sudo oem config-prepare'. you may need a dash between the oem and the config. this will enable you to configure your computer for user usage on reboot. (anotherwords, reboot after entering the command line and it will take you through a 4 step user configuration. (time, keyboard layout and user information). Then you are done the installation. To download programs (or obtain them from your iso installation CD) go to application-->add/remove. there you can download and install programs. Ubuntu also has a synaptic package manager. Default settings for the desktop is gnome. You can download other environments. Ubuntu comes with hundreds of drivers, and as long as your printer is not Lexmark, you won't have a problem (lexmark doesnt really support linux in general). Most removable drives like flash drives, etc are recognized automatically by Ubuntu.

hope that helps!

1) Is it EASY to install and configure? Is is done by text files or GUIs?

Yes, it is easy. You can install via a GUI, using the normal install CD; or you can install in a gui/text mode, using the Alternate Install CD. The Alternate gives you more control and options, but you have to know what you want to do. If you want the Alternate CD look further down the download page, below the server s/w.

2) What about package management?

Synaptic, a very good GUI tool; apt-get from the command line; or there are other options available.

3) Do you have big package repositories?

Ubuntu is a subset of Debian, but in my opinion, the repositories are ample.

4) What about proprietary software (nVidia drivers, acrobat reader, etc.)? Are they simple to set up?

I have found this to be easy.

5) Do you have an automount feature for removable media (like SuSE) or do you have to go through the shell and type "mount ...."?

There is an automount feature.