Hi, I'm setting up my new MacBook.... I've got Parallels Desktop and Windows 7 running perfectly. I am looking to add Linux to the mix. Any thoughts on running Linux on a laptop? I read many moons ago that it wasn't very efficient? Any thoughts on which versions are better (or any that are incompatible) to use on a personal laptop used primarily in an education / home setting? Keep in mind that I'm a Linux beginner.... I haven't tooled with Linux since I was a college student in the 90's. Thanks for your thoughts and advice!
Ubuntu or Mint Ubuntu or Mint have been my suggestion to friends and family. I often find that Mint installs .deb files more easily than Ubuntu and the interface is pleasing and easier to negotiate. Having said that Mint wouldn't exist without Ubuntu. Much of Mint's underpinning belongs to the work done to Ubuntu. Ubuntu seems to be more "tweakable". If you are looking more towards the commercial realm and for server functionality I might lean towards Red Hat or CentOS. Mint and Ubuntu install easily into a VM parallels, now, but stay away from beta builds. Parallels is a teensy bit slow about supporting those OSs with application updates. I hope this was useful! Ed
This question will undoubtedly get a multitude of different answers depending on who you ask. Purists may go for Debian, Red Hat or SUSe but, if you want something a bit more easy to use and GUI based you may prefer Ubuntu or Mint. i personally prefer mint as it is very easy to use but still has all the power of Linux. Lee
I too suggest Mint 10 or 11 is out now. I too suggest Mint 10 or 11 is out now. I'm a big fan now of Mint. I've pretty much tried most of the "Big" distributions. I really like Mints interface and ease of care. It is a derivation of Ubuntu, which would be my second choice now. ~CP Hendsbee
