What is the best Linux package and where can I download it?

I want to play with Linux on an old Win98 machine. I got a copy of Reactos on CD but can't get it to load without XP installed which seems to defeat the purpose of Linux! What is a good one to start with? I am happy to Format the C Drive and only have Linux if it is easier

What is the best Linux package and where can I download it?
I recommend Xubuntu as it is developed older boxes. Its the same as Ubuntu but demands less in the way of system requirements, and much of the information you would need can be found in the Ubuntu forums.





Xubuntu Link http://www.xubuntu.org/





Ubuntu Forums http://ubuntuforums.org/





Enjoy.





LUg.
Reply:ubuntu is the best linux distro I've used
Reply:if the hardware will support it ubuntu based distros are the best or you can alwasys try some little live cds like DSL its very good stuff
Reply:GNU/Linux (is the correct name for the OS, Linux is just a kernel) is really easy nowadays, you are going to love it, will give new life to your PC (I'm running Ubuntu in a old P3 at 650Mhz).





As the previous answer said, Ubuntu is the most friendly distribution at the moment, download the LiveCD and try it before installing it works wonders, you can burn the image with http://www.infrarecorder.org and you get the CD from:


http://www.ubuntu.com





Another great distro is Fedora: http://www.fedoraproject.org but is not recommended for old computers.


If your computer runs too slow with Ubuntu try ArchLinux is really light: http://www.archlinux.org





I currently use Ubuntu and I love it, but have also used Fedora, archlinux, gentoo, mandriva (not so good), gNewSense (based on ubuntu), Debian (ubuntu is based on this one) and openSuSE, all of them are great but after Ubuntu openSuSE is the next best one, it requires less resources (as a default fresh install): http://www.opensuse.org





Good Luck! and welcome to the Free Software world =) (free as in free speech not free beer).





PS. For those who are curious: http://www.getgnulinux.org
Reply:Mandriva is the best distro thts available right now. You can download it at http://www.mandriva.com/en/download/free