Best Linux Distribution for M11x?

As I know there are many threads on whether Linux works in the M11x and how well. I have read majority of these and feel confident that it does except for select drivers. The main reason I desire looking into this is that my friend mentioned that it is a great OS to tinker with if you want to really control how things are done and I'm always down for learning new things.

Basically, I intend to install it on an external HDD and see how I like things. I know that the graphics driver will not work with optimus so I will be stuck there.

This thread is mainly to focus on these questions:
1) Which distro would you suggest for someone new to the OS? (I hear Ubuntu is the most user-friendly.)
2) Is there one in particular that is better in the field of computer science (my major)? I may go for this once I get a grasp of the OS suggested in question 1.
3) Has anyone been able to figure out how to get the graphics to work?
4) Is there a site that might get me on my way for learning?

 

New to the OS? Ubuntu for sure. Use the windows installer, it sets up everything - the dual boot, EVERYTHING. Making it easy to uninstall if needs be.

I would join the ubuntu forums to read up on it more.

Learning the command line is much more important than learning to navigate the GUI.

It is not easy, be warned.

 

Yes I think the command line is what is my friend meant by the feeling of "control" over the system.

With the windows dual boot installer I'd have to choose which one to boot into every time I start up wouldn't I? Or is there a way to set it up so that I can boot into Windows by default? I'd rather not add another 15seconds into selecting a OS to boot. Thats why I thought of the external HDD.

 

You could probably force it to auto boot into windows with less than a 15 second wait time.

I believe the default value is already pretty low - like 8 seconds.

It's not noticeable to be honest and if you're watching the system reboot you just hit enter on Windows to skip the wait altogether.

If you plan on working in the IT field after university, having a good foundation of the *nix command line and it's core directory / partitioning structure is a great foundation.

 

Yeah thats the main focus of my plan into looking at thsi.
So it is possible to autoboot into windows? That would be great. I just do not care to press enter half way into each boot.

 

Optimus support in Linux is partially working now.

 

I'm dual booting my M11X r1 with Ubuntu right now, and I have to say that it is probably the easiest of the *Nixes to get used to. There's even an app (search here in the AW section for it) that allows you to control the Alien FX lighting system. I'm one step away from going completely to a Linux-based system: Once I get Blu-Ray to work properly there's no reason for me to use MS, other than to keep skills up for both of my jobs.

 

Interesting, Thanks Davy.

I wouldve gone into Linux earlier but majority of my games are windows dependent and im used to programming in windows. Ill see how things go. Thanks for the advice. Any more would be appreciated but Ill go from here.

 

Supposedly there is a way to get Steam to work on Ubuntu, but regrettably I have yet to try it.

 

Steam might work but the games are still dependent on the OS. Just like some games on steam only work on windows, windows 7, and mac.

 

I haven't kept up with linux, but has anyone added punkbuster support?

 

You can also run various Linux distros off of disk (if you have an external optical drive) or flash drive; that way you can try different kinds and not have to partition drives. I use RedHat at work; it seems to be very popular.

Damn Small Linux can be installed on a tiny pen drive (it's all of 50MB - you can practice your CLI skills on the fly!)

Couple of resources that I've found helpful:

http://linuxcommand.org/

http://www.oreillynet.com/linux/cmd/ (for commands)