I was just wondering where i can download the OS Linux or do i have to buy it? where at?

u could download redhat at www.redhat.com and the others at the respective sites but u dont get support that way and it burns ur bandwidth. so just spend $40 on a boxed set and u get support. fair deal i guess.

Or just order a much cheaper Debian CD....

If you want to buy, try http://www.linuxcentral.com ...
If you want to download, try http://www.linuxiso.org [maybe it's .com, not sure...]

Oh, and I'd reccomend either RedHat 9 or if you _really_ like to fiddle around with things and have lots of patience, Slackware.
But, if you jsut want to try linux out and see if you like it, maybe try Knoppix, it just boots from CDR, no install, no patitioning, ect...so its a good demo. (^_^)
good luck

What do you want to do with Linux? If you want to do word processing and play games then you should try SuSE or RedHat. If you want to program then I would recommend using Debian.

http://www.debian.org/
http://www.suse.com/
http://www.redhat.com/

um i wanna do some hacking and learn some networking and also some programing. i just heard linux is very good for hacking. and i wanna learn to be a hacker not a cracker.

Yeah, definately Slackware a good choice then... From what I'v heard, most hackers like the Slackware distro best because its rather customizable, small, secure[able], and one of the more Unixy Linux distros...It also is pretty good for programming too, I guess.

You can also think about building your own from scratch once you feel comfortable with slackware, that's what I did and it works wonderfully.

allright sweet. do i buy slackware or do i download? if so where at?? and im a beginner and im just starting to learn about networking and hacking if anyones willing to help me out and teach me some networking let me know and email me at iiiiijahiiiii@aol.com.. id realllllly apreciate it

slackware.com should be a logical place to start.
You may download their ISOs and burn them, or purchase a CD online somewhere for $~5. They aren't a commercial distribution so good luck finding some CDs at your local computer retail store.

oh and another thing. im desprit to learn about networking and hacking and i cant find anymore tutorials im only 15 and really want to learn. so if any1 is willing to help let me know and email me at iiiiijahiiiii@aol.com id apreciate it thankkks!

You could try playing some wargames to familiarize yourself with common insecurities. Try hackerslab.org

JAH, I think that you're missing the point. Hackers are extremely curious people. When they want to learn about something, they search it out. If you really want to be a hacker then you should find out these things... like where to get slackware. There are plenty of networking tutorials online, but you have to search. If you don't know how to use search engines then this is a good place to start learning. I think that Google has a page that explains how to use it.

I'm not trying to discourage you from asking questions here. I just think that you should try a little harder and come back when you have specific questions. Real hackers don't need to be taught. They learn on their own. They research stuff until they understand it. You'll need to get in the habit of sitting down at the computer and reading a lot. About once a week, I go online and read for about 5 hours straight. I used to do this every day but now I'm in college and I don't have so much free time.

BTW, if you're on the Internet then you must have access to basic Internet tools like: ping, traceroute (tracert), telnet, ftp, nslookup, etc. These might be a good place to start experimenting.

Yep, for the most part, hackers are self-educated persons. To be a hacker you _must_ learn how to skillfully use Google, its like one of top tools in the hacker's [or any internet person] shed.
Try http://www.hackersmiling.com and http://www.happyhacker.org for tutorials, and such.

Oh, and for war games, try http://www.rootwars.org , they're novice friendly [for the most part :P ].