Couple of things to keep in mind:
- If you have no idea what Linux is and don't even know what a distro (distribution for short) is, check out http://www.linux.org/ or Google any specific questions.
- There is no such thing as the "best distro", its just personal preference.
- It isn't very difficult to dual boot with Windows, so you can have Linux and Windows run side by side.
The four most popular Linux Distros here at GeeksToGo that are good for beginning users are:All these are available free and are relatively easy to use and install.
If you are looking for a Linux distro that can run on an old or not-so-good computer, check out Slackware Linux.
If you don't want to actually install Linux, but want to test it out and see how it works, download a Live CD which allows you to run Linux directly from the CD. The most popular Live CD is Knoppix, however many other distros such as SuSe make Live CD's as well.
If you have any specific questions, don't be afraid to ask
Edited by mpfeif101, 05 November 2006 - 09:15 PM.