In case you have read our articles, you know that I’ve been doing plenty of distro hopping recently. The freedom of choice is one thing that Linux fans often boast about – you can choose in between hundreds of Linux distributions, a number of desktop environments and so on.

What distribution is ideal for me? This is by far the most often asked question on just about every forum board. New users are adopting Linux by the hordes everyday, and that’s a great thing, but because of the large number of distributions to choose from, they can’t help but wonder which is best for them.

The first thing that puzzles someone new to Linux is the concept of Linux distribution. When you want to get Linux on your computer, what you install is actually a Linux "distribution" that contains a Linux kernel (see here for a definition of kernel) and some applications like Firefox (web browser) and Open Office (word processor and spreadsheet).

"One of the things that is very confusing to new Linux enthusiasts is the "distro," or distribution. And one of the most confusing things about distributions, for the beginner, is that there is no official definition of what a distribution is, exactly: distributions existed in many forms long before anyone cared."

Ubuntu Server has one of the cleanest and easiest Linux distribution installers. However, in many cases, its designers choose to ignore security in favor of ease-of-use. The result? An install that is not secure by default.

Choosing a Linux distribution from the dozens, if not hundreds, of available options can be a daunting and confusing proposition. What is the best distro? What are the differences between distros? How do I choose? These are all good questions. In this multi-part article, I will give you my opinion and guidelines for choosing.

This seems to happen time and time again. I don't understand why people consistently seem to ignore FSDaily when it is (or at least can be) the news chosen by the whole foss community. I also just found out that it ranks higher than all the other news hubs according to alexa.com. If you think FSDaily should be in this list please go comment on the post and vote "None of the above".

One of the first things that confounds new users is that GNU/Linux is not a single operating system. Instead, it's the general name for hundreds of closely related operating systems -- distributions or distros, as they are usually called. All the distros share the Linux kernel and include many of the same utilities and programs, but differ in purposes and the resulting customizations.

SymphonyOne is a distribution designed in a way that's uniquely different from other distributions. Its key focus is ease of use and simplicity. This is perfect for kiosks, new users, or technological neophytes who don't use a computer much, or simply don't like complicated interfaces.