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Originally Posted by runningbird  Let's try this again. My internet blipped out right when I hit submit last time and I lost it. I'm using ZenWalk, which I think is an offshoot of the Slackware distribution. I have tried Linux Mint, Ubuntu, and a couple other distros I can't even remember, but they were all significantly slower than Windows XP on my somewhat slow, refurbished laptop. ZenWalk is basically the exception, although I've noticed videos don't play as well as with XP - they tend to run at very low FPS.
By Windows "clones" I just meant the GUI, which I realize isn't entirely accurate. I just meant I don't see anything in the way you perform tasks that make these Linux distros a compelling choice over Windows. The virtually nil risk of virus is certainly a nice perk, but I've never paid much attention to them anyway.
I don't understand how you could install it in under 30 minutes without prior knowledge; I spent 30 minutes just reading about how to install it side by side with Windows, and ended up accidentally deleting all my files regardless.  |
Hmm, I can't imagine why Ubuntu would be slower on your laptop, but if that's the case, you should ask around on the Ubuntu forums, I'm sure there are guys there who can tell you that.
I'm just saying because I've found that other Linux distros can be way more difficult to deal with without some Linux and/or programming knowledge at the beginning.
Ubuntu installation really takes only about 30 minutes and I'd say it's almost automatic, although the dual-boot install may be difficult for those who don't know how to do it.
Just a tip: when I did this for the first time, I've created a new empty partition from Windows ( I don't remember which program it was ), then selected that one when intalling linux.
It's easier than creating a new partition during installation.