Although Linux still has a reputation for being hard to use for beginners, some distributions have made a real effort to be more accessible.

Mandriva (formally known as Mandrake) is one of these and this is their latest distribution that can be downloaded at no cost, Mandriva Linux Free 2008.

Mandriva 2008 is easy to install as it takes care of making space on the hard drive and can use most PC hardware including wireless networking cards.

Once installed it offers a choice of desktops, including a 3D interface for those with a powerful enough graphics card and computer. If you are unsure which program replaces a Windows one, Mandriva has provided a list of major programs in both.

The paid-for versions of Mandriva 2008 include DVD player software LinDVD and TransGaming's Cedega for playing Windows games on Linux.

Note that this download is for the DVD edition, which is over 4.4GB in size.