Comments on: How do I switch from XP to Linux? What accompanying productivity software is best alternative to MS Office?

By: hitechsleuth

hitechsleuth — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 18:50:59 +0000

Get UBUNTU (or XUBUNTU if your computer has less than 256MB of RAM).

It’s a free, reliable and up to date operating system.

You can explore it from the "LIVE CD".

It’s easy to install and use. You can dual boot it with other operating systems.

Once you have it installed, you gain access to thousands of free programs created by the open source community. There is excellent support – see the WIKI starter guide, and the Linux forums.

Always back up your data before making changes to your computer.
References :
http://www.ubuntu.com
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BurningIsoHowto

http://partitionlogic.org.uk/

http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Ubuntu_Edgy
http://www.ubuntuforums.org

http://supergrub.forjamari.linex.org/

http://wiki.linuxquestions.org/wiki/linu...
http://www.linux.org/dist/
http://www.linuxquestions.org
http://www.linuxforums.org

http://www.gnome-look.org./
http://www.beryl-project.org/
http://wiki.beryl-project.org/wiki/Main_Page
http://forum.beryl-project.org/
http://www.openoffice.org/product/
http://www.tutorialsforopenoffice.org/
http://www.gimp.org/
http://gug.sunsite.dk/
http://www.gimp.org/links/
http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/
http://wiki.linuxquestions.org/wiki/Linux_software_equivalent_to_Windows_software

By: Stu

Stu — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 18:04:59 +0000

Only advice I’d offer is to think it through. There are many things people take for granted in Windows that are not so easy in Linux (at least not yet). For example if you connect to work via a VPN, use photo programs, set up printer sharing, etc…it can get ugly in a hurry. However if this is just for personal use, all three Linux are good alternatives. Just download the .iso files (disk images) and burn the to CD or DVD. Once you’ve got that, pop it in your machine and boot to your CD/DVD drive and the setup program will walk you through everything (partitioning, which files, etc). I’d also recommend KDE if you like fancy, glossy stuff as your desktop manager and GNOME if you prefer a more conservative/work-friendly desktop. Good luck!
References :

By: Knowledge

Knowledge — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:45:59 +0000

Kubuntu would be a great choice.

1. The installation is very easy
2. Takes no time to setup
3. Reformatting is a breeze (Select the "entire disk" option)
4. Comes with OpenOffice fully loaded.

Yet before you begin, make sure you save any documents(other stuff) you want to keep to CD / DVD or floppy. You will lose everything on the disk in the process.
References :

By: UbiquitousGeek

UbiquitousGeek — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:34:59 +0000

It's easier to switch to Mac. That's what you really want. Admit it. It's okay.
References :

By: David D

David D — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:08:59 +0000

All three distros are fairly good for beginners, I'd tend towards Ubuntu myself. The closest match of MS Office is OpenOffice.org (distributed with Ubuntu), but you might have better luck with Abiword and Gnumeric as these packages are lighter weight. It is worth trying out a few different options and seeing which fits your particular needs best.
References :

By: BountyJack

BountyJack — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:59:59 +0000

Linux is open source, so you can download it through their Web site.

http://www.linux.com/

Try Open Office, this is a better, free alternative to Microsoft Office (which is not free).

http://www.openoffice.org/
References :