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[catflea]

I'm looking to install linux on my desktop PC.    I've already done this before, using Redhat 9.0 but found it very frustrating because I couldn't work out how to install (or get!) drivers.   Are there any more recent distro's around that are easier to work with?   or could anyone advise me how to get around the drivers problem with redhat?

Cheers

edit:  I will be dual booting with XP

[torg]

i suggest SuSE. They have a really good distro with a decent installer and good hardware detection. the last tim i installed it i had to configure only the network myself...
no i am using Gentoo but that one is not for newbies. its more recent (as all programms are compiled from the latest sources) but it's tricky to install...

[infract]

I've used quite a few distributions in the past, and for ease of installation, i was pleasantly surprised by fedora core 4.  didn't need to do any driver selection or anything, it found it all automatically.

a good review, from someone who had hated redhat's past releases.

[est]

Mandrake and Ubuntu seem to be a couple of pretty good newb linux distros.  Ubuntu even has a "live cd" that boots a working version of linux without having to install anything.  some people use it just as their utility cd or whatever, but you could use it to boot up and check out if everything will detect ok, which is handy.

[Addius]

My suggestion.. review if your hardware is supported by the used kernel as a module before you make the switch. If the support is either not there or in a "bleeding edge" status, forgett about it. It will only be troubles for you, no matter which dist you choose.

Distros that are easy to install since they autofind hardware is Fedora, SuSE (I believe myself to remember that it did?), Mandriva and Ubuntu. The two later are a real pain if your hardware isn't detected automaticly though.

[SpacemanSpiff]

I'm not a very big fan of Red Hat.

Depending on what you want, I suggest the following:
SuSE - extremely easy to install and detects pretty much all hardware. Great to start with, I guess. If you know unix based OSes already, you might be annoyed by all the GUIs and the custom init scripts and Yast messing with the config files. If you don't want to mess with config files by hand, this is not an issue for you. Go get it.
Ubuntu - beats SuSE when it comes to package management, but it's harder to install. Personally, I hate apt-get with a passion, but that's because I hate every single package management out there.

Personally, I use Slackware, but I guess that's not a good option for starters.

[Lug]

My suggestion.. review if your hardware is supported by the used kernel as a module before you make the switch. If the support is either not there or in a "bleeding edge" status, forgett about it. It will only be troubles for you, no matter which dist you choose.

Distros that are easy to install since they autofind hardware is Fedora, SuSE (I believe myself to remember that it did?), Mandriva and Ubuntu. The two later are a real pain if your hardware isn't detected automaticly though.

Yeah Bleeding Edge Gentoo on a new rig sucks major balls. I'm not man enough to compile all my shit or be responsible for what everything is doing. I'm presently running Ubuntu and it solved almost all of my problems.

[catflea]

Looks like I should be looking at SuSE then really!

[Addius]

Quite so I'd recon.. Remember to make good use of the internet, especially IRC. There's loads of helpsome people out there, they only want some respect and politeness in return.

linkage to #SuSE @ Freenode's website

[nickb285]

Also, someone mentioned live-booting, I know SuSE live-boot disks are available as well--I've got an older version (9.1) that I live-boot from time to time, and it works perfectly. Takes a while to load, but once you've got it you can play with it to see if you like it.

[catflea]

i've purchased suse professional 9.3 now, for a very reasonable price.  waiting for it to arrive now!

[Lug]

Why did you buy it when you could have just downloaded it (legally) for free?
link

[Addius]

To support a good project and because not everyone has a DVD burner?

Paying little for an OS is in my eyes a lot better than both paying a lot and paying nothing.

[nihilist]

Hrm.  I'd vote for Ubuntu, or perhaps Xandros.  Linspire, anybody?  Fedora Core, no.  SuSE...  Eh.  I generally live for Gentoo, but if not, debian-based systems come in second.

[catflea]

Why did you buy it when you could have just downloaded it (legally) for free?
link

56k dial-up.     need I say more?

It'd probabally cost me more to download than buy!!!!

[Lug]

Why did you buy it when you could have just downloaded it (legally) for free?
link

56k dial-up.     need I say more?

Nope!

[catflea]

I got a cheap copy of Suse Linux 9.3 for dummies at the same time.   Hopefully that'll help me sort it all out when it all arrives