Hello everybody,
First, let me congratulate you, Afonic, for a very good forum.
Since I have been a Linux enthusiast for four years now, I would like to present my impressions about Linux to our friends in this forum.
Yes, you could say that I am addicted to Linux    You will be too, if you try this wonderful, free, OS which is
much more stable than Windows.
The only thing that you will miss are the viruses, the spy-ware and all that junk.  

For our friends who may not know much about the subject, allow me to attempt, here, a brief description:
-Linux is a free operating system; it is free to download, and it comes with hundreds of software packages pre-installed.   You can also install a great number of packages, for free, from a web site called a Repository.
-It does not look or behave in a different way than Windows. therefore, it's easy to learn to use.
-Its  installation takes only a few minutes, depending on the type of distribution (there are hundreds of different Linux OS flavors to please your taste).
-It is a very stable system; no crashes or blue screens.
-Because  of  its structure, it can't be invaded by viruses, malware or spyware, very easily.
-Even if, by some reason, you have a crash, you can re-install it in a few painless minutes.  And you can, of course, save all your previous work and settings in a Home folder.
-Linux is interactive. You can do many things with it. It's, finally, pure fun.
-You will find a great deal of help in the Linux forums.
In short, Linux is a paradise of fun and serious work also.

And, guess what, I am a Linux addict!  I am now running Linux MInt 3.1, code name CELENA and I love it!
Take a look at it in Afonic's review:    http://www.dvd-guides.com/content/view/218/104/

Cheers,
Blogger

Hello Friends,
I must  mention the fact that this is a very nice-looking and greatly functional forum.  Congratulations to the Administrator!
Sorry that I was off topic here, but I couldn't resist making a point of it.
I would also like to stress the fact that my postings, here,  are intended to guide newcomers(newbies) to Linux. 

Now, back to the subject of Linux.
By now, you may have guessed that I am a Linux geek.  And though I am dual-booting Windows XP,  I  use windows for my scanner, mostly. 
Unfortunately, many Scanner manufacturers have not yet provided drivers for some of their units.
So, if you intend to buy a scanner, make sure that it can work with your Linux distribution.
Fortunately, most newer scanners are usable in many Linux OS's.

A Linux OS, by the way, recognizes most of your hardware and installs the proper drivers automatically.
You just install it and it takes care of the rest; no driver installations are needed.

So, isn't Linux wonderful?   

Greetings, your friend, the Blogger

Thanks for the welcome messaqe, Afonic.
Your experience in Linux will be extremely valuable to the forum members.
One important subject would be: Installing Linux on, and booting from, a flash disk (pen drive).
Do you know of any links dealing with this? Or better yet, can you write a simple, step-by-step, tutorial?

Blogger