You may not want to buy a distro, BUT...
I am also a Linux noob, and I just got the Mandrake PowerPack 9.2. It was about $70, and came with 3000 apps, plus support. I have installed it on a separate box, and as a dual boot on my laptop. The installs were flawless, including peripherals, lan. pcmcia modem, etc., networking settings with my Win2k box, internet connections over lan and modem, etc.
While Linux is free, my time is not. I wanted to get up and using Linux. With a distro that helps with the setup, I can tinker to my hearts content.
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The difference between theory and reality is that in theory there is no difference.
"God made man, but he used the monkey to do it." DEVO
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