What is the the best distribution of linux?

New to linux though know a lot about computers as I'm majoring in computer science. I'm not sure what the major differences between the distributions are. I'm not looking to dual boot. I just want something that comes with a gcc compiler with a decent UI that potentially in the future I may run as a server. I don't know if there are any you'd reccomend or if the distributions are pretty much the same.

What is the the best distribution of linux?
Ubuntu is a great debian based distro, which is very user friendly and generally _just works_. It also has an AMAZING community willing to support you.





PS. Being debian based means having the beautiful APT system of upgrading and installing which makes it all a snap.
Reply:Go for xandros instead. Report It

Reply:knoppix.net is great to check out linux but not install it on your hard drive. THe best option is Red hat or Stormix. Both have really easy windows-link installers.
Reply:FEDORA CORE 4
Reply:Red Hat is pretty user friendly. Knoppix is bootable from the CD rom drive and is easy to use also...takes 5minutes to install it.
Reply:Skip Linux and get a Mac OS/X machine. Apple has a great set of developer tools that are all freely available on their website. These are built on many of the same open source tools used in Linux distributions, notably gcc. If you get a Linux machine, you'll spend a lot of time tweaking it to try to get stuff to work as well as it does on a Mac. Get the Mac and all that will already work and you can focus your energy on learning to make great new products.
Reply:I use Linspire and love it. I am not at all technical. I tried several others and they were too hard to use. Ubuntu and others don't support MP3, DVD, Windows Media, Flash, Java, etc. by default, so you have to install that later, which is hard for someone non-technical. www.linspire.com
Reply:You are a newbie so... Kubuntu





After 1 or 2 years you could discover the amazing Debian World!!