FINDING A GOOD LINUX ?????? I'm Bad at that HELP ME OUT!

and i notice it has processor architechture will it matter that i have a pentium 4 3.2 ghz HT processor?

How do i look for compatibility for my processor and hardware with linux i dont want to download it and ot have it work or mess up my machine.

OKJ SO having never dealt with architectures before what do i use ?

i386

PPc

x86_64

I have no idea what any of them are and what will work on my machine

IM LOST so many things to consider I KNOW NOTHING of LINUX and how or what to download...... so educate me

nnbnbnnbnbHello Durk21. I can relate to your situation having been (and in most ways still being) a Linux newbie myself. You might want to check out these previous posts on the subject:
www.firewall.cx/ftopict-1839-pain.html+linux+newbie
and
www.firewall.cx/ftopict-3318.html
On the subject of what to do/how to get started, if your XP machine can stand it I would install VMWARE's virtual server, install that on your XP and then play with Linux within it. There are a couple of gotchas regarding getting Linux distros to install into a Virtual Machine but the positive side is that you don't risk messing up your existing disk arrangement by making one false move when setting up GRUB. Whether you go the VM route or install 'for real' onto your 40Gb second disk, you can get most Linux distros for free by downloading off the 'net. I've found the best way is to download the .iso image which you can then burn to CD/DVD using your normal CD burning sofware such as Nero

Yes

I'm currently downloading

Ubunutu Linux's ISO file to my desktop to burn to CD later

I'm thinking about just installing it to my secondary i dunno though Vm sounds tempting but I want it to actually work well and be able to do thing with it

either way im sure it'll be an experience bc im not proficient with OS's of any kind

that site was good but got any site that can tell me like compatibility and reliability

Also where can i get LINUX for FREE? Since im just playing with it i don't really wanna pay for it.

I think you should do more research before you post questions/ comments like these. Most Linux operates under the GNU licensing the sites that charge for a distribution are offering to send a CD to you. You can download the code for free.

Compatibility and Reliability are up to you. Linux is a secure and highly available operating system, assuming the operator can use it effectively. I would recommend you purchase a book on Linux history and the basic concepts. . . or just Google Linux newbie.