What the best operating system?

Answer 1

That depends on what you are looking for. If you want an OS that is fabulous for multimedia editing, But you are willing to pay a tad more, Mac is the way to go. If you are looking for a professional or gaming environment, I would say Windows.

Then there's Linux. I have only spent much time researching the line of Ubuntu and Linux Mint. All of them have more personalisation options, minimal expenses(you do need a CD, DVD, or Flash Drive to install it), and run faster to some degree or another than either of the others. Also, with both, you can choose a distribution that fits your needs. Ubuntu has official distributions with Gnome(basic) KDE(heavyweight; Kubuntu), XFCE(lightweight; Xubuntu), LXDE(superlight; Lubuntu)

Linux Mint also has the same releases, but some have switched over to Debian Testing(continuous updates rather than new releases).

Other distributions I have looked at are Edubuntu, Ubuntu netbook edition, and UbuntuStudio.

Linux Mint is based for people who want a desktop more like a Windows or a Mac, more button-pushing and less terminal-typing.

It really depends on the speed of the computer, too. If your computer only has 512 MB RAM, It will not be able to run one of the bigger OS's out there, like Kubuntu, Windows 7 Ultimate, or Mac OS X Lion. I would choose something like Lubuntu, so it doesn't lag without running anything but the OS.

I had an HP desktop that could hardly run Windows XP, and now it runs Linux Mint 11 with no trace of ever lagging.