New OS advice

[michaelsmith664]

I'm looking to try a new OS after all the issues I have been having with windows. Can anyone recommend me a new OS.I got my eyes set on a chromebook or ubuntu. But i'm not sure which one yet. Also Software isnt a big priority for me,I mostly surf the web and use online apps(Google docs).My computer isn't too powerful so I don't want anything that will make my computer work too hard.

Thanks

[Winapp2.ini]

There are lots of Linux distros to choose from. Try I've heard good things about Mint and Arch, although from what I understand, Arch can be complex.

[login123]

I am considering the same thing, converting a laptop over to a Linux machine, but have not made the leap yet. If you can, post up how it goes for you, most here would be interested.

 

You can try most Linux distributions by just running them from a live CD.

In other words, you don't have to install them until you're sure which you like.

Just download the ISO file and burn it to a CD or DVD and start your computer from that. You can also boot from a USB stick if you prefer. That would allow you to remove one and install another using the same USB stick. Save money.

 

I have tried Ubuntu, Puppy Linux, Mint, and a few others that way. Those all have their own forums, and the members there are usually pretty helpful. Been a long time since I tried Mint, it will have changed a lot by now.

 

For a stand alone OS, right now it seems that Ubuntu has a pretty complete set of applications. Just my opinion, I have not made exhaustive comparisons. I really like that Ubuntu has LibreOffice.

 

For speed, Puppy is hard to beat. It runs in RAM. There are lots of Puppy variations, and it isn't easy to figure out which is best for your situation. But as Rridgely points out in that other thread, it is not as full featured. Also it is maybe a little bit less "window-ish" than Ubuntu.

 

There is a Piriform Forum topic about Puppy here, it has download links and a link to a pretty good Linux installer (called YUMI):

http://forum.piriform.com/index.php?showtopic=38610

Also there are some older Puppy Linux discussions on this forum, you can find them with a topic search.

 

Ubuntu can be downloaded from here:

http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop

[TheWebAtom]

If you only want a laptop for Google Docs and web browsing, then the Chromebook was created almost specifically for you.

[rridgely]

Honestly I don't think you will have any less issues with linux but if you want to try, then Mint and Ubuntu are probably the most likely to work.

If you want a real OS that isn't Windows, the only true alternative is Mac OSX. Chromebooks are interesting but they are very limited to what you can do.

[mta]

@michaelsmith664

 

Trying to be really objective here....

For anyone, for any reason, trying to get away from Windows really sucks - there's no getting past that sad, simple fact.

Everything you try to do will be like pushing treacle(substitute usual noun here) up a hill.

Drivers, software, gaming - you get the picture, all become bigger issues than they should be.

(having said that, I tried some Linux distro about 3 years ago and couldn't get half the drivers to work on my hardware platform, so they have improved a lot)

 

Having just migrated one of my rigs over to Ubuntu 12.04 LTS, I can at least recommend that as an option.

They only snag with drivers was getting my Brother printer to connect wirelessly.

And the only software issue was in discovering LibreOffice has a sad mirror of Excel.

 

But overall, a good replacement to Windows but, for me, not something I would jump ship for completely.

It's not there..... just yet.

[michaelsmith664]

Well I'd like to thank all of you for you input on this topic.I think i'll be going with a Chromebook (simply because of my lack of need for software).I'll let you guys know how it turns out

Once again thanks for the advice

[login123]

Just sort of an addendum to what others have said.

Sometimes, not always, you can boost a computer's performance significantly and cheaply by just installing more RAM.

Also by doing a complete reinstallation of windows. Reinstalling worked wonders here.

[Andavari]

Sometimes, not always, you can boost a computer's performance significantly and cheaply by just installing more RAM.

 

Maxing out the RAM in my system has made using modern browsers on my old WinXP system vastly more stable, less crashing!