First Things First--Get to Know Your Stuff



What You Need to Know About Your Box

  • monitor specifications--resolution (e.g. 1024x768), color resolution (e.g. 16, 24, 32), Model (e.g. Dell)

  • Drives- hard drive size (e.g. 80 GB), more than one hard drive?, cd or dvd drive, or both? or a seriously old computer that needs new life?(e.g. 128MB RAM and 20G hard drive?

  • What kind of video hardware do you have? (e.g. Nvidia or Dell Integrated)

  • How much memory do you have? This is important and will play a part in determining what version of Linux is right for you. Do you have under 512MB, up to 1GB, or more?

  • My advice is to write these things down. I have a Linux notebook just to keep track of my computer specs. Of course there is a whole lot of other info in there too!



Where To Find What You Need To Know About Your Box

  • The obvious place to look is in the manuals that came with your computer.  If you have a desktop, you will need to read separate manuals (e.g. the monitor manual, motherboard manual) in order to find out all the information.
  • Get online.  The manufacturer will have a website with a section for downloads that usually includes manuals if you don't have the ones that came with the computer.  They will also have a page in which your computer will be shown with all of its specifications.  This is good enough; don't worry there's no test, just learn the basic info.
  • If the manufacturer doesn't seem to have what you are looking for, someone in the world will, so just do a search.  Usually "specifications for ComputerBrand ModelName" will give you what you need.  You might have to read through some junk though.

Okay I Know My System, Now What?

Now It's Time To Shop!

Wait, there's shopping involved? Yes, indeed.  There are literally over 300 Linux distributions going at any given time, so you have to find the one for you.  Don't worry it's not as bad as it sounds.  In fact, this is one of the most fun parts!  There are two great ways to narrow down the list of distros so your choice will be much easier to make. 

  • Take a distro chooser quiz!  It's a fun little quiz that asks you a few questions about your computer (just a couple easy ones) and some of the things that are important to you when you use your computer, like web surfing, downloading music, etc.
  • You can also take a more thorough approach if you prefer to know about all the various distros out there. One place to go for such information is Linux Online. The Linux Online List is helpful at narrowing down a huge list of distros...Under the dropdown list of category, I recommend Mainstream/General Public for newbies. Select your language (and yes, that will narrow the list down as some distros are not written for English speakers). Under platform, this gets a bit tricky..I have a Dell, which means Intel. However, you might have something else. This is where you need to consult your manuals, system information or google your computer's model name to find out what platform it runs on. Keep this information! You will likely need it again.

Where to Get Help Choosing a Distribution (Distro)


Distro Chooser Quizzes (I recommend taking both!)

Distro Chooser Quiz From Zegenie Studios

Distro Chooser From PolishLinux.org

Some of the questions on the choosers you may not quite understand; that's okay, it's not a big deal and you can retake these quizzes as many times as you like.  You will want to choose desktop user and graphical configuration tools will be important to you..graphical configuration means the GUI (graphical user interface) which is really wordy for "point and click"
localization and internationalization means your location and language are available

Once you get your results from the Chooser Quizzes head over to an online magazine called DistroWatch.  As far as I'm concerned, DistroWatch is THE online authority for info about Linux Distros. 
CLICK HERE  to go to their site armed with a list of distros from your research. Search them all out on DistroWatch. Click each distro link into a new tab in order to explore them one at a time. Each distro has a summary page with all the info you will need to research that distro to find out if it's for you or not.
Also on DistroWatch, be sure to check out the "Major Distributions" link at the top of the page..It is a list of the "big dogs" of the Linux World.


So What Exactly Am I Looking For In A Distro?

Well now that is up to you and your computer for the most part.  Just starting out, the best thing for you would be to find a distro that makes you comfortable.  For example, if you are leaving Windows, you might want to start off with something that looks similar or feels similar until you get more proficient.  Here's a few other tips to keep in mind:

  1. A list of requirements: This is what specifications you need to have on your computer in order to use that distro.

  2. A FAQ page or list of common questions asked of the distributor.

  3. Until you are less of a newbie, an important part of your distro will be the GUI (Graphical User interface or "point and click") and Desktop Environment (point and click options, themes, menus and setups)..Mostly you will be dealing with KDE, Gnome or XFCE. You will have to choose on your own which you like more.  KDE tends to resemble Windows in looks and feel, Gnome tends to resemble Mac in look and feel, and XFCE tends to resemble Gnome with fewer resources and clutter.

  4. Check out the package listing the distro has..if they have one..if not, maybe they aren't for the newbie..Check and make sure that the things you will be using everyday are there--like the webbrowser you like, or a media player of some kind, email and an instant messenger.  Try to find distros that work "out of the box" or "it just works" so to speak..these are the most newbie friendly. (If they advertise as newbie-friendly, they most likely are)

  5. Support, support, support!!!! Being able to ask the developers questions is important..that's right, in Linux you can email the maker of the application or distro and they actually answer back!! Another important part of support is a user forum..where other users of the distro ask questions and post answers to help each other. Another important aspect of this is how nice is the forum (what did she just say??)..seriously though, if you are a newbie and have a lot of questions, you don't want some jerk telling you that you are too stupid for Linux; you want someone who will help you with real solutions that work! Don't worry, the jerks are a small minority fortunately.

  6. A place to download the distro is it a mirror? or a regular page? and believe it or not, I have come across the odd distro or two where I couldn't figure out how to download it. (probably not worth it to a newb)

Okay now that you are ready with the distro you want to try out first, let's go on to the Second Step--Making a Live CD.  This will allow us to make a bootable disk that will run when you turn on your computer and then you get to try out the distro that you decided on without making ANY changes to your computer! 
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Click here for the next step!