Questions b4 i install a *nix

I've decided to start using some form of unix and i have a few questions about which flavor and distro, etc.
1. when people say that an os is "more powerful" what exactly does that mean? what can slackware do that red hat cant?
2. what do you recommend? I've mostly been considering slackware, gentoo, or one of the BSD's because everbody says they are the most powerful. I ask you to keep in mind that i am not a total *nix newbie and that i will have a spare partition with windows on it, incase i start getting homesick or whatever, so plz dont just say "get red hat cuz ur a n00b and red hat is close to windoze"
3. Is gentoo really as hard to install as everybody keeps saying? I dont actually know how to code very well... so would that make things more difficult and would it be worthwhile to install gentoo if i cant customize it(i think that requires some programming skill)
4. are there any programs in particular that i should really get that dont come with the installation? maybe a windows emulator to play games with, some kind of music and video player, etc.
5. If you know a good linux installation guide site or something, in case i have a problem during the install that would be very helpful

thanx for the input :D

First of all UNIX is proprietary software of SCO. GNU/Linux is free software.

I have used RedHat, which is really intuitive and friendly. It also has the advantage of using .rpms the best :)
I now use SlackWare and there are some things about it that I like more than RH. It does require some degree of knowledge to use it all, but it's not impossible. RTFM!

I have no experience with Gentoo or BSD, but I might install one of them on VMWare under Slackware if I have the time and patience.

WINE is a Win emulator, but I for one never used it. Had some problems installing it on Slack and then I didn't really need it. dosemu... the name explains it all. Or you could use VMWare to install virtual OSes and play games there etc.

As for Linux installation guides, I think linuxiso.org points out to quite a few. Usually each distribution website has their own guide for the respective distribution, and that's the best one you'd want to use.

OK, do you see the sticky thread entitled "Which version of Linux to use" ? Click on that.

oh, didnt see that there, thanx for the heads up gore.

Quote:

---

Originally posted here by Phonedog911
oh, didnt see that there, thanx for the heads up gore.

---

*sigh*


Can you make the title flash gore? ;)

Steve