# Best Linux for Mom



## GG (Jan 9, 2007)

Hi there!

I'm a new Linux user having installed Ubuntu 12.04 on a laptop that had become an ugly paperweight when Windows croaked. I've enjoyed poking around and learning Ubuntu, but I am in no way a Linux expert and have only used Ubuntu.

My question is regarding my aging mother's computer (Mom is aging - computer is relatively new). The problem is she keeps clicking on things that tell her she needs them in order for her computer to work right/better/faster/etc., and I keep having to clean it up and get it working again. I'm concerned she'll install something that's beyond my limited skill to remove/repair, so I am considering installing a Linux OS for her to use as a safer option than the Win8 she has now. (I think I'd leave Win8 alone and install Linux alongside in case she couldn't adapt to Linux.)

So what Linux version would be the easiest for her to navigate coming from Windows? I'd do my best to set it up with everything she needs as readily available as possible, but I'd like to keep her befuddlement to a minimum. She recently had to go from Windows Vista to Windows 8 when she replaced her computer and did okay with that transition, but found it pretty frustrating (read:my phone rang a lot).

TIA!


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Linux or Windows, your mother is still going to visit web pages and click "helpful" links. She's probably just as well off staying with Windows out of familiarity.

It's clear from my signature line that I'm a big fan of Linux as a server platform, but I still use Windows for my workstation. It's for that reason that I don't really have any specific advice about the various flavors of Linux workstations, since I'm not really familiar.


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## GG (Jan 9, 2007)

Thanks Nevada!

As I work my way through the legion of malicious programs she's installed (despite updated and active Norton and Malwarebytes) I'm convinced a change of OS is not going to solve the problem.

Edited to add: I was hoping the malicious programs she's installing wouldn't be able to install and run in Linux like they do in Windows. Was that a false hope?


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## kkbinco (Jun 11, 2010)

I'd say Kubuntu is the most Windowsish. The default install should be all your mom needs.


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

GG said:


> So what Linux version would be the easiest for her to navigate coming from Windows?


From the user's point of view, it's not so much which Linux, as which interface, that matters. Coming from Windoze 8, I'm not sure which would be easiest; but coming from any other version, any of the simpler GUIs will work. Most non-geek users really only want to know where to click for browser, email, their favorite game, and maybe occasional word processing; they don't want to navigate menus, scroll through screens, etc. to find their stuff. So, stay away from the eye-candy GUIs like KDE4, Gnome, and the like.

Since you're already somewhat familiar with Ubuntu, I'd suggest staying with that. For both ease of setup for you, and ease of use for her, and a good balance of simplicity and adaptability, I'd suggest XFCE as the interface. It's easy to set up to look familiar to a Windows user -- main menu in the bottom left, then the Quick Launch area with everything she regularly uses, then the Task Bar, then System Tray, clock, etc.

So, I'd suggest Xubuntu: http://xubuntu.org/



GG said:


> I was hoping the malicious programs she's installing wouldn't be able to install and run in Linux like they do in Windows. Was that a false hope?


No, it's not. Linux will decisively solve that problem. I've switched quite a few users of the clueless computer neophyte persuasion to Linux; most have been using it for years now, with not a single malware problem.


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## GG (Jan 9, 2007)

Thanks everyone! After cleaning up her computer, I took it back to her still running Win8. I mentioned the Linux option, and she's open to the idea. I'm going over again today with my laptop to give her a preview of these options and let her choose what she thinks will work for her.

Thanks again!


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## secuono (Sep 28, 2011)

I have Kubuntu on my laptop, I can't install junk that doesn't work with linux, so I'm sure it would be better if your mom had the same linux.

It even partitioned for me and saved the old OS, though, it was an older Ubuntu that it saved. Donno if it will save Win8. It sure didn't save WinXP when I first switched, even though it said it would...

Only real difference is how to install things and the names of everything. For websurfing, she'll do fine on it.


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