Is Ubuntu suitable for this system? If so what version?

Question

Dear respected Ubuntu community

I will be running Intel® Core™ i7 Quad Core Processor 6700HQ (2.6GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)

NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 960M - 2.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12

GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-8260 M.2 (867Mbps, 802.11BGN) + BLUETOOTH

Intel 2 Channel High Def. Audio + SoundBlaster™ Cinema 2

500GB SERIAL ATA II 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (5,400rpm)

8GB Kingston SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8GB)

I primarily use my pc for gaming, though not the latest games, I have an extensive collection of older titles. I have never been a Linux user, but I am able to research how to bugfix having spent years battling windows in its various forms.

I am making this inquiry because I am worried about windows 10. Is WIN10 as bad as all that? I actually feel dread at the prospect of installing it on my sweet new rig and am really here to ask.. can Linux help me? As a disgruntled customer I should be able to take my business elsewhere. Will Ubuntu be able to support my hardware. I am relatively advanced user but not a programmer or commercial networker or anything like that.

Sorry if this is not the right place to post this. I need good advice fast as my build date is rapidly approaching. Should I get a second hgardrive if I plan to run a dual booter. Thank you for your time in regards to this matter.

Kind regards

Inquirer

Answer 1

Windows 10's automatic updates are definitely annoying, and the new tracking methods they put in are a bit invasive. However, Pro can turn off auto updates (I think there's a patch for Home) and the data tracking can be turned off with another program. Of course, Linux is great, especially Ubuntu ;), but if it doesn't work out, Windows 10 should be fine for just gaming (although I recommend Windows 7).

Now, for Ubuntu. Your computer is a very good build. Your processor will work fine, but make sure you get the 64-bit version of Ubuntu to use it to its full potential. Since your LAN and WiFi are both Intel, everything will be OK there. Anything Intel is usually fine. Unless your hard drive is SCSI or in soe weird proprietary RAID system, you're fine, and I doubt you'll be doing that. You almost never have to worry about RAM from a software point of view.

The only thing I worry about is your graphics adapter. NVIDIA tends to have annoying problems when you install its proprietary drivers. You can go without installing them, but games won't run as well. I have the 950M, and it works fine on Ubuntu 14.04-15.10, so the 960M should also work fine.

Everything you've provided should work fine with Ubuntu. Since you're a new user, I recommend getting the latest LTS (long-term support) release, Ubuntu 14.04. I believe it's supported until 2019 (meaning you can get help with it until then), and you'll have an easy upgrade to the next LTS release, 16.04.

If you have any more questions, feel free to leave a comment.