Having picked up a copy of Tony Bove's Just Say No to Microsoft, we took it upon ourselves to have a look at how easy it can be to run a home PC without the aid of any Microsoft software. We've found it to be far easier, in fact, than many entrenched Windows users may think. It's certainly not too difficult a task to make the switch, with the most complex decision to be made which Linux distribution to choose. Taking the operation on from the point of view of usability I settled on Ubuntu; one of the friendlier distributions on offer.

With a tag-line like that, it's hard not to love it.

Ubuntu

Ubuntu is a Debian based Linux build, which aims to make Linux an accessible operating system for anyone willing to take the plunge. Ubuntu is named after a sub-saharan ideology that focuses on interpersonal relationships. In that respect it's all true to form. It also aims to use only free software to provide an up to date and stable OS.

Ubuntu installs quickly and easily, taking less time and space than a fresh Windows install and without the tedious requirement of patching security updates as soon as the installer has finished. Another point in its favour is that it is massive popularity, which guarantees a community that often proves ready, willing and able to help with any issues you might encounter. As far as window managers (that's explorer to those of us still living in the world of windows) go, Ubuntu comes packaged with GNOME, which is both Windows-user friendly and easy to manage. The learning curve is shallow and there's never the feeling that you'll need to move on to more complicated things.

GNOME is enough like windows to be as easy changeover.

For anyone interested in making the leap, Ubuntu is available free here.

Alternatively, for those so inclined, KDE (Kool Desktop Environment) feels further removed from the Windows desktop experience, offers some appealing aesthetics and is just as usable as GNOME. Rather than installing KDE after an Ubuntu install, users can download a Kubuntu image and boot from that instead. In the case of a Kubuntu install GNOME will be MIA and KDE will present itself immediately. In either case, installation of another window manager is hardly difficult. In fact, thanks to "apt-getting", installation of anything is both free and easy in comparison to commercial products.

KDE has a style all it's own... and I love it.

For anyone interested in making the Kubuntu leap, it's available for free here.

For older systems, Fluxbox can act as a lightweight and highly user customizable window manager. Its combination of usability and easiness on resources mean that Fluxbox is an ideal option for anyone with a little Linux understanding and a dated machine that could still well serve as a household web browser or glorified stereo.

The official Fluxbox website is here, with more information on the lighter window manager.

Ubuntu comes packaged with Mozilla Firefox as a browser, for your comfort and stability. Firefox differs only slightly from OS to OS, with the Tools>Options being instead under Edit>Options. Thanks to the inclusion of so familiar a browser, any teething issues for a Linux initiate can simply be looked up.

Both Ubuntu and Kubuntu are available in Live form, meaning users can boot directly from a CD without modifying their existing OS. This itself is useful for cleaning or backing up from a drive with a Windows installation, as long as it's not in NTFS (which Linux just plain doesn't understand).