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how do i choose the version i need

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brmccarty
brmccarty Posts: 2
in Getting Started with Linux

First I have never used Linux. I have been wanting to try it but couldn't down my pc to try. I have a older laptop that I want to try it on. It is a Gateway SOLO Pro 9300 PIII 450 with 288 ram 6 gig HD.

The version must run Open Office, Gimp (or similar photo program), be WiFI compatible, and not be hard to learn (don't have a lot of time to spend studying). I would be nice to have a windows emulator to run some windows apps and games.

Thank You,

Billy

Comments

  • woboyle
    woboyle Posts: 501
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    Try xubuntu with a minimal install cd. It handles wifi better than most. The other stuff is available for any linux distribution, pretty much.
  • Goineasy9
    Goineasy9 Posts: 1,114
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    The stats of you laptop are similar to my Thinkpad i1413 from back in the 90's. I've used AntiX (a Mepis spinoff), and Puppy Linux successfully on it. My advice is to download live cd's and give it a try (along with a live cd of xbuntu). I also see TinyCore has a recent release, that might work.

    All these distros have links at: http://www.distrowatch.com/

    Booting up Live cd's allows you to install wifi drivers that might be non-free and thus not included in the particular distro. You can read about drivers in the release notes of each distro. You can also come back here if you have more questions.
  • Naiki
    Naiki Posts: 7
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    I would also say Puppy. Awesome distro works on nearly anything old.

    http://www.puppylinux.com/
  • midnitte
    midnitte Posts: 1
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    Have you thought about using the netbook remix of Ubuntu? I'd imagine using it on a laptop wouldn't make a difference, should run extremely fast as well.
  • brmccarty
    brmccarty Posts: 2
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    Thanks everyone,
    I downloaded Puppy Linux and so far I like it. I am going to try a few others. I am going to do some reading to see what wireless network and wifi cards work best with linux.
    Billy
  • Rovanion
    Rovanion Posts: 73
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    Well you try out what fits you.
    I have been jumping inbetween distributions testing how they are and has for now settled with Linux Mint 7. And I'm going steady it seems. Linux Mint comes with everything you need to do your day to day job on the desktop and on the net. And it does it with style.

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