You likely already know this, but maybe someone doesn't, that most Linux distros do not have to be installed, as it will run as a LiveCD. I am currently teaching myself this OS using Puppy Linux. So no need to actually install any distro that works as a LivCD, in order to practice with it. So long as you have at least a CD/DVD-ROM, and enough RAM, you are set.
This was a few years ago, and the only option on the Ubuntu disk was to install. That didn't work. I do have a laptop with Linux Mint installed. I play around with it once in awhile but haven't done much with it.
Well Ubuntu now looks to be the LiveCD sort: https://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=ubuntu ...but I'd stick with Linux Mint, if you can stand it's uber-bland look. Linux Mint, PCLinuxOS, and Simply Mepis are usually the ones recommended for beginners. I prefer PuppyLinux because its lightweight (runs fast in RAM), and fairly basic, so easier to explore. I'm also fooling around with KolibriOS, and Icaros Desktop. The latter is really fun to mess with! Puppy I'd call a chore, and KolibriOS is somewhere inbetween...not quite a chore, not quite fun.
I wanted to update this, as last month I bought a LiveCD of MX Linux 17.1 from OSDisc.com, and have been using it off and on as a LiveCD. It has pretty much replaced Puppy Linux, as I'm now using it exclusively to teach myself Linux. It runs almost as fast as Puppy, and much easier to use. Relevant links: ttps://mxlinux.org/user_manual_mx17/mxum.pdf https://www.osdisc.com/products/mx Don't know if I will ever actually install it, as I have over twenty distros to test drive, so it may be awhile before one wins the spot on my secondary HDD, but I'd definitely recommend MX Linux to anyone wanting to teach themselves the Linux OS, or anyone just wanting to use the OS as a LiveCD.
Addendum: Been using this as LiveCD for quite awhile now. When my tech guy swings around in August, I will definitely have him install it on my secondary HDD. May have him install TAILS, Parrot Security OS or one of the other security/darknet focused distros as dual-boot...but definitely MX Linux is coming to my PC. I recommend it to anyone wanting to teach themselves Linux, as painless as possible.
On the subject of liveCD/DVD , possibly the easiest to use is Austrumi , which like Puppy can be ran as either a liveCD or installed tempoarily to RAM and ran from there.Shuting down the computer wipes Austumi from Ram , and your computer is not affected. i would like to point out that most linux distros can be installed directly to a USB stick and ran from there. Mint can be installed via Mintstick and most other distros via Etcher or using the DD command. A USB key of say 32 gb and above enables you to use the USB as a seperate drive with storage , so you can boot direct into the USB. This, of course is only by enabling USB boot in the boot menu and, if necessary by disabling Secureboot and Fastboot in Windows machines. ( beyond Windows 7) Windows7 and earlier should use a legacy bios and on these machines installing Linux should be straightforward.
One of the things that I like about my web directory job is that I get to learn a lot of stuff about a lot of things that I probably wouldn’t otherwise bother with. For the past few months, I have been redoing our Computers & Internet category tree, and have just finished with the Linux category. Although I have had a few machines with Linux installed, and currently have three, all with different Linux distributions installed, I’ve never done much with it other than booting up whatever the default browser might be. Firefox looks pretty much the same regardless of which operating system it’s running on, so that doesn’t teach me a lot about Linux. If I were a couple of decades younger, I think I could get caught up in the Linux movement. As it was, when I went through my techie phase (building my own computers, programming, running a BBS, etc.), Linux hadn’t been developed yet or was just getting its start, so my techie days involved CP/M, various versions of DOS, and OS/2. In the early days of Linux, you had to be a techie to run Linux. Today, while the Linux market is probably still dominated by techies of one sort or another, you don’t have to be a techie to use a Linux OS, except for the fact that very few computers ship with Linux installed, so someone would have to look around for one that does or be at least comfortable enough to install a new operating system. On a personal note, I have a Gateway computer that never again worked since I tried to install Ubuntu on it about fifteen years ago. However, while there are actively maintained Linux distributions that are without a graphical interface, there are plenty that don't really look all that different from Windows or the macOS. For that matter, the Windows OS includes some Linux code, and recent versions of the macOS are Linux-based since Apple abandoned its Mac-native code when it moved from the Mac OS X operating system to the macOS operating system, the current code is little more than Linux with some proprietary modifications. When working on a directory category, my objective is usually to list only from five to twenty representative sites within each category, the business model being that others will pay to have their own sites added. However, since Linux people don’t pay for anything, I added all of them that I could find in the time that I allowed myself to the Linux category, and there are quite a few Linux distributions and flavors, more than I had anticipated. Do any of you use Linux on a regular basis? Have you ever owned a machine that had Linux installed? Actually, as I have noted, macOS is basically Linux, although, because of its proprietary nature, I’m listing it directly under Operating Systems. If you have ever owned a smartphone with the Android OS installed, that’s Linux. Like macOS, the iOS operating system in iPhones and iPads is also based on Linux. Windows includes some Linux code, but not enough for it to be considered a Linux distribution.
Let's renew this question since it's been a couple of years. Are any of you using Linux operating systems? I've bought a few used computers with various versions of Linux installed, but they didn't last very long. I don't know that Linux was the problem, though. More likely, they crashed because they were old computers.
I would like to try Linux on my 12 year old tower with Vista but I don't want to lose what's there now since it still works. I would need some "for dummies" instructions though.
I have an old PC that runs Linux from a small thumb drive. I got it cheap when my last laptop died and I needed a backup to get on the web and find a repair shop (or another PC.) I've not fired it up in a long time. It's insane that there are no other ways to conduct life.
What scares me more that I just cancelled AT&T landline. They have been charging me $54 just for local service. So, now I have a cell and a 'lined' wireless. Knock out a bit of infrastructure and we are all on our own. Computers too, for that matter. Only one type of operating system gives someone a lot of control. That sort of thing used to be illegal. Back to Linux thread, all I know about that is they used it on the island for Jurassic Park I.