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While the vast majority of systems will run Linux out of the box, there are some hardware manufacturers that have not made their products Linux friendly. This is particularly true with laptops, but don't worry, there are a couple of ways to test your hardware before you actually go to the trouble of installing a distro on your computer.

The first is to search the internet for linux support for your computer. The second is to download and burn a live cd of one or more distributions. Again, most major distributions have a live cd that will let you try it out without installing to your hard drive. What's a live cd, you say? A live cd is a variety of linux that runs straight off of a cd. It does not install anything on your computer, unless you tell it to, but does run your computer, and allow you to do all the things that you normally do, such as surf the internet, etc. A live cd is also a very good way to try out different distro's before you actually install them. Think of it as test driving a new car before you put your money down.

While most of the major distros have a live cd that you can download, I do have a couple of recommendations that I would like to make. The first is Mandriva, the distro that I use for my daily work. Mandriva is a full featured, mature Linux distribution that is easy to install and easy to use. The new version (2008) has simplified package and computer management even further, making it versatile and powerful for both beginner and power user alike. Mandriva is rpm based, and has both free and commercial versions available. You can get it here: http://www.mandriva.com

Next up is Ubuntu, and it's sibling Kubuntu. Ubuntu uses the Gnome window manager by default, and like Mandriva, is easy and powerful to use. Kubuntu is Ubuntu, save that it uses KDE as the default desktop. These two distros are deb based, and if you are on a slow internet connection, you can order free cd's from shipit.com. They even cover the shipping. The only possible cost to you might be faced with is the customs duties and taxes for import into your country. http://www.ubuntu.com, http://www.kubuntu.org

Finally, let me mention one small caveat about live cd's: they run slowly. This is not because of anything to do with Linux per se, but rather because they are running off of a cd, which is just not as fast as your hard drive. When you install Linux to your hard drive, it will run at normal speeds. There are many other live cd Linux distributions available, some of them fairly exotic, but feel free to try them out. After all, choice is what Linux is all about. The power to choose the right Linux distribution for you is just the start. Customizing your Linux from there, and making your computer run the way you want it to is what Linux is all about.

So go ahead and download a distro or three, and find the Linux distribution that is right for you.

Learn more about this author, Mberry.
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