Zen Internet Support Forum

Rebuilding the PC shortly in dual boot format. Is Ubuntu still a sensible choice for a novice introduction?

Thanks.

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Chris

I'm not sure it is, to be honest. It's not well served with user-friendly configuration tools, so if (for example) your graphics card doesn't get set up correctly during installation you're up a gum tree. Also it uses the Gnome desktop by default, and in my opinion a novice who is used to Windows will be more at home with KDE. With this in mind you might try Kubuntu rather than Ubuntu, but the configuration comments still apply.
 

The two distros which stand head and shoulders above the rest for ease of use are Mandriva and SuSE. Both have comprehensive GUI control panels for configuring just about anything. The downside is that you need to download a DVD or several CDs to get the full experience. Mandriva 2007 is on the cover DVD of the current Linux Format by the way, so that might be a good place to start.
 

Eric

 

Thanks I'll have a look at the magazine you mention.

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Chris

You can download the installation CD and boot from it and run it from the CD to see whether you like it, if you do then you can use the installer while still using the test environment which runs in the background and you can still continue using your computer. Personally I prefer Ubuntu because I'm not a fan of KDE, I find it rather cumbersome but you can try Kubuntu if you like and see what you think of it, again no need to install it first.

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David Nelson
Team Leader
Business Support Unit
Zen Internet

If you're new to linux, you may wish to try a distro with the KDE desktop first. I would suggest Kubuntu, & PCLinuxOS.  

You can download them from here:  http://www.frozentech.com/content/livecd.php   Or indeed any other ISO that you may wish to try. :)

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