Looking for a simple distro for a newbie

I have a Lenovo T060 laptop that I have to put a Linux distro on it for a friend of mine. So far I have tried Puppy Linux, Ubuntu 11.10 and 12.04 beta, Lubuntu and ZorinOS 5 as well.

After all those distros, I am back to considering Zorin OS. Basically, my friend is a Linux newbie with some Mac OS and Windows experience. I am looking for a distro that is fast, reliable, and hopefully has the functionality of my favorite distro, Ubuntu 10.04. Seeing that this is her first adventure with Linux, I want to make it a positive one for her. She basically wants to use something like Pidgin for her chat software. She will also be using it wired as well as wireless.

I want to make sure it is easy for her to access her computer settings as well as easily have access to software for download. Do you think that Zorin OS 5 would be a good solution for her?

Although I love Puppy Linux for it's speed and software, I think it would be way too complicated for a newbie coming from the Mac and Windows world. Even I find it confusing at times.

One of the reasons I love Ubuntu 10.04 is because of the ability to drag and drop almost anything to one of the panels. I love this when I am working on a project and I need quick access to things.

Thanks for your help. Looking forward to your suggestions!!

Hello rmcellig.
Linux has too many distros and that is the beauty of it. You can try and choose. There is no bad, good or better linux distro. The best linux distro is the one that suits you best.

If you ask how I feel about Zorin, I can say to you that from my early computer days I was a windows user. I have tried too many linux distros but could not stick to one of them. Either because it was too dificult, or because it was not complete, or because I just did not like it.
All that, before I came across Zorin. Very easy to use, variety of looks (many of them familiar to a windows user), very "complete" distro having already installed all necessary programs for work, music, movies etc. and very nice looking especially when compiz is enabled.
It was the first time I "stayed" with a linux distro, and to move a step further, I replaced completely my windows OS (!).

So, just to wrap things up, if you ask me, I would say that zorin might be indeed the best linux distro for a windows user to move on. But as I said, opinions varry and you never know until you try. So I would suggest to you to boot the live CD of Zorin to a PC and let your friend use it so as to see and judge for herself if she actually likes it or not.

Thank you so much for your comments. I have also tried Mint 12 and for me, Zorin just feels better. We'll see how it goes and yes you are right about all the distros. What a feast of OS heaven to choose from!

hi,

you mention ubuntu 10.04, please note that it is only supported for a short while!!.

"Canonical intends to provide support for Ubuntu 10.04 until April 2013 for the desktop version".

This will of course give you ample time to try a few distros!!.

Regards Wolfman

I'm aware that 10.04 is only good for about another year but I tell you that so far, Zorin is looking really good and solid

Under the start menu (or whatever it's called in Zorin), there is a Control Center link that covers a lot of customization. The Ubuntu Software Center application appears to be pretty easy to use, and the user ratings and descriptions are very helpful for deciding whether to install a particular program. I still don't know how to uninstall anything, though, so I tend to be very conservative about what I download.

I agree that Puppy can be a little unfriendly for someone not willing to learn the workings of Linux. It is fast and friendly, but definitely takes some work to customize. I find it to be the most friendly small-size Linux,though, and so keep a copy on a flash drive.

I mostly tried to learn about lightweight distros for USB boot, and so can't compare Zorin with other large and complete Linux distributions. Still, it has been one of the easiest to set up. It will, of course, require some time to learn how to use it, but this is true for Windows and MacOS as well.

DanYHKim wrote:I still don't know how to uninstall anything

In my Zorin OS 5.2 Core, this is how I uninstall:

*open "Ubuntu Software Center"
*select "installed software"
*click on any program that you wish to remove
*select "remove"

I am currently running Ubuntu 10.04 on an old Dell. Is there a Lite version of Zorin that might work on this PC, or will the standard version of Zorin work?

The best way to uninstall any package is to use Synaptic if you don't know how to use the command line, just open Synaptic search for the package and then right click and completely remove!!.

Regards Wolfman

rmcellig wrote:I am currently running Ubuntu 10.04 on an old Dell. Is there a Lite version of Zorin that might work on this PC, or will the standard version of Zorin work?

How much RAM do you have??.

Zorin Lite or any XFCE based system should work for you!!. If you have a few CD's available; try a few out, like Swarf said, test them in live mode first, if they run live; then they will work no problem!!.

Always check the min system requirements against your system specs!!.

Regards Wolfman

@hottyson: Boy, am I embarrassed! Thanks!

I have 2gb of ram in the oldest dell desktop. Puppy Linux works great from cd. I just never know what puppy distro to use. So far I like puppy 5.2.8.

Voyager Linux (based on Xubuntu =XFCE)
Xubuntu
Bodhi (E17)(formerly Enlightenment)

Regards Wolfman

Hi swarf,

I tried Bodhi out, it runs fine, you just have to get used to their way of thinking when it comes to configuring the system. Lots of things to tweak!!. Very fast btw!

Regards Wolfman

Hi All
Have you tried Peppermint ?. I tried it a while ago and found it very light and fast and their is still a lighter version Ice available on the downloads page.

http://peppermintos.com/


Cheers Auldyin

I tried Peppermint a while back and liked it. I think I will revisit it again. Thanks!

I have Zorin 6 Lite on my EEEPC and It works great.

"Looking for a simple distro for a newbie"

Might I suggest..... Zorin?

Guess i'm in this thread a bit late but ...
i am running 'zorin 6 core' on an old acer 2.00ghz w/ 1.5 gb ram and all is running quite fast here with no issues

Thanks! Actually I have Zorin 5.1 on my old Dell 3000 desktop and works fine considering the speed of the 3000. Maybe I will take the plunge and try Zorin 6 core and see what happens. I also have Puppy Linux 5.2.8 running on the 3000. Works great and is very fast!