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In years past Linux's unintuitive user interface made the operating system difficult to use for all but the most savvy geeks--and it often sent novices running back to Windows. These days, Linux is a kinder, gentler, more-approachable operating system, nothing like the cryptic command-line-driven beast it once was. And Corel Linux OS Second Edition is the friendliest Linux package we've seen.

We've tested other Linux distributions before, including Caldera, Red Hat, and Mandrake. Corel's latest Linux distribution, version 1.2, makes leaps and bounds in ease of use and installation. And although Corel offers hand-holding for beginners, advanced users can still escape the graphical user interface and head back to the command line.

Let Corel Be Free

The Corel Linux OS is available free from Corel's download site. But be warned: The download is a whopping 451MB ISO image. (After you download the ISO image file, you must put it onto a CD for your computer to read it.) To make things easier, Corel also offers a CD-ROM for $4.95, plus a shipping fee.

Corel also sells two boxed versions through retail outlets and its online store. Corel's $79.99 Second Edition Deluxe includes the light version of WordPerfect 8, Corel Photo-Paint, the game Myth II, and BRU Backup Software, as well as a 12-inch inflatable Linux penguin to ward off evil Windows spirits. Included in the $24.99 Standard Edition is the light version of WordPerfect 8. (Corel's latest office suite for Linux, WordPerfect 9, is available separately.) We tested the Deluxe Edition.

Penguinize Your PC

In just four steps, a Windows-only PC can be transformed into a lean, mean, stable Linux machine. Before installing, we checked the Linux Hardware Compatibility site to see if our hardware would run under Linux. Checking compatibility is an especially important step if you have a newer machine, because it may have new hardware architecture that Linux doesn't know about. (As with all OS installations, you should back up your system before you install Corel Linux.)

We inserted the installation CD-ROM. For the first step, we had to create a user and input a user name. Next, we were presented with a couple of installation options, Standard or Advanced. Advanced offers four types of installation: Desktop (minimum installation), Desktop Plus (which adds developer tools and text editors), Server (with Web, file, print, and FTP programs), or Custom (which lets you choose the applications you want). Those who are new to Linux or are unsure of what route to take should follow Corel's recommendations; we took Corel's advice and opted for the Standard installation.

After choosing our installation, we were prompted to choose a partition option. You can pick from three. "Take Over Disk" erases all of the information on the hard drive. "Use Free Disk Space" leaves existing data intact--take that option if you plan to set up the machine to dual-boot Windows and Linux. The third option, best suited for the advanced user, is "Edit Partition Table." (If you don't know what that means, don't select it.) We appreciated Corel's explanations of each option--they can keep you from accidentally wiping the contents of your hard drive.

Since we wanted to run both Windows and Linux on the machine, we chose the "Use Free Disk Space" option. Corel Linux detected the PC's hardware, scanned the hard drive, and calculated the space needed for the installation. From there, the installation of all the software began.