hey...Like i said i am new to the whole Linux.....

I have a standard Desk Top with windows XP on it.

i wanted to know where i can learn about using these operating systems like Linux on my computer??...remember im like so stupid when it comes to using CMDs ....i need like a introduction to see if it is the right move for me ...i really want to learn how to manage linux or Ms Dos or whatever one i chose to use in place of windows

DOS is dead... don't touch it.

If you want a really good *nix system and want to dive into the realm of command line shells, then go for FreeBSD. If you want something with GUI shell to fall back on, I'd recommend FedoraCore. Just make sure you get FC6 (Zod) and not 7 - they made 7 too glitsy in my opinion.

I started on Slackware, but don't recommend it for your first venture. Ubuntu is popular these days.

Nah compile a full Gentoo install from a stage 1 tarball THEN install Ubuntu. Then there will be no complaints about installing Ubuntu

Let's see:

1. Ubuntu. Easy to use, simple and moderatelly fast.
2. Gentoo. Hard to use, more complex since you have to compile it yourself, the fastest since you can tailor it to your hardware.
3. Sabayon linux. Its made from Gentoo and its really flashy since its got those vista-like hardware rendered effects. Its pretty easy to use, no idea about speed since I only ran it off a live-cd.


Those are my faves.


And DOS is not dead. Its a very good learning tool.

Next thing you know QBaisc is dead.

I highly recommend Knoppix 5.1.1 which boots from CD/DVD and if you like it you can install it on HDD.

Windows XP On the Laptop & Main Desktop.

Windows 95 on the Media Centre Machine.

OpenSUSE on everything else.

i have the same question,i wanna try a unix system and see if i can get use to it but theres diffrent idea's posted on this post.i really want it to need as less as possible shell/command moderation and use,more like windows if i wanna compare.
so what should i choose?

IF you just want to get your feet wet I'd recommend using a Live CD. You just boot to it and it's pretty much a running system. To start out, I'd recommend something well rounded and stable (Ubuntu/Kubuntu, Slackware, Fedora).

Start at Linux Documentation Project or the forums at Linux Questions. Learn the file structure and where linux puts everything in relation to what you know about Windows and then you should be able to start playing with the various applications and configurations.

Work from the command prompt as much as possible and use the man pages when you get stuck.

As others have mentioned, using a Live CD/DVD is a great way to try different Linux distributions without going through the installation only to find out you don't like the particular distro.

Which OS to choose depends on the way you use your computer, the everyday tasks you do may be easier to do on one particular OS.

I've wanted to learn Linux, but I haven't had the time or the motivation to start all over with a new OS (I've booted it using a Live CD but that's it). The problem is also where/at which level to start; being an expert (not to brag) at Windows and the likes (DOS/cmd-scripting), but not a programmer in any way makes it difficult to find a guide that suits me without being overly simple (=just using the GUI) or too advanced (=programming). I'm sure others here at MSFN are in the same position.

You can install just the core of Ubuntu.
If you want a simple, lite GUI then get Xubuntu. It uses XFCE. Even lighter is Fluxbox & IceWM.

I had vista on stock dell system, it ran pretty good, slightly slow but nothing to complain with. But then i dual-booted with Ubuntu 7.10, and runs 39434 times smoother and faster. I only run back to vista when i need to use graphic arts such as photoshop and etc... I would define it as MAC OSX as with XP combined into an uber system. highly recommended

If you like Win Vista Use Vixta it's good.

Like Zxian I used to be a Fedora user (and I loved v7, by the way), but the number of updates to deal with just became too much for me - like a new kernel every two weeks? Plus the fact that the updates for each version are dropped after 12 months.

Then I came across recommendations for CentOS in the Fedora forums. CentOS is the stable version of what Fedora is a testbed for. I like it because it is more stable than Fedora and has a life-cycle of at least five years. Excellent OS for a server and pretty nice as a desktop.

Pure Debian. Never installed a GUI on it. Everything was shell-based. That lasted quite a while.

Actually... CentOS is essentially a free copy of RHEL. The CentOS development team won't touch a piece of code unless the RH guys do, which is a good and bad thing. We're running CentOS on all of our servers here at the university, and except for a kernel panic due to faulty drivers, everything's been fine (the kernel panic has since been sorted out and is no longer panicing ).

I'm running Fedora8 x64 now on my workstation, and I like how they've made things a little more subtle. As for updates, I've just got a weekly cron job that does the updates for me at 4AM every saturday. I'm usually not in the lab at that time, so my work isn't interfered with.

I'm actually really liking Kubuntu more and more for a desktop replacement since it can be so very hands-off like Windows. Adept updates run like Windows Automatic Updates, just about everything works out of the box and I can actually be productive on it quickly w/o having to wrestle with a variety of config files. Plus, it's Debian based so it's very stable (at least for what I'm doing).

It also has sudo setup by default so I don't have to worry myself over the root account. You can fiddle with it to your heart's content, but if you just need to get it up and running in a usable state this is it. I actually stumbled on it b/c I was finding a lot of solutions in their forums.

For Linux these are some of the distros that i have tried (i recommend them)
Ubuntu 7.10-easy to install , good for begginers (not for those from windows though cuz it doesn't have a windows like GUI at least for me !)
Kubuntu 7.10-same as Ubuntu just with KDE it's better for my opinion KDE for me has a more Windows Like Look!
OpenSuSe 10.3-Good too I got the KDE edition and it ran smooth
Sabayon - For those that like to throw win Vista effects to microsoft if you know what i mean perfect EYECANDY !
Puppy or DSL - for portable things i sometimes keep one edition on my USB just for any case it uses XFCE
and about Unix like things I used the followings:
Solaris 10 - Real BIG 4.x gigs and it doesn't have a good eyecandy however it isn't really complicated and it has some good things it's made from SUN (Freeware)
Mac OS 7.3 - use Basilisk 2 to run it however you need the roms so legaly own a machine first and there are a lot guides to get started Oh and it has some UNIX parts
FreeBSD - didn't use it i just got it recommended from a friend (too much cmds or what i don't know )
hope you like some of these