The choice of a Linux distribution is really a matter of end-user preference.

We offer several different Linux installs on our laptops (each significantly tweaked for the particular laptop you order). These include Fedora, Ubuntu, CentOS, Debian, and Slackware at the base prices your see on the system pages. Our current most popular installs are Fedora 13 and Ubuntu 10.04 LTS "Lucid" or 9.10 "Karmic".

We also offer 64-bit installs of Fedora, Ubuntu, CentOS, and RHEL for those customers that request a 64-bit install, and are aware of the limitations a 64-bit environment might impose on them. We ship 32-bit installs by default. All EmperorLinux hardware is 64-bit capable.

We also offer Linux laptops with the professional-edition box-set-included installs of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (WS, AS, and ES), and SuSE. As with our base-price offerings, all kernel-level updates and hardware configuration support continues to come from EmperorLinux. These distribution options are intended to give you enhanced availability of user-space package updates via the distribution packagers' network update portals.

We will let you have it almost any way you want. Call us; let's have a nice geeky talk about Linux.

Our own EmperorLinux is currently based on Fedora 13 that has been specially modified for optimal performance in a portable environment. We tailor the system to best meet the needs of our customers, including the addition of our own custom kernel (the empkernel) and laptop-specific utilities to make using Linux on a laptop that much more enjoyable. EmperorLinux is fully compatible with all the most popular RPM updating applications (including up2date, Yum, and RHN) so if you have used Red Hat in the past, then we will recommend the Fedora-based EmperorLinux to you. We also offer Fedora 12, Fedora 11, Fedora 10-based installs if your company or research lab has standardized on those earlier versions. Older versions may be available, depending on the hardware you are ordering.

An offshoot of Debian and our second most popular distribution offering, Ubuntu builds on the Debian foundation by adding integration, ease-of-use improvements and features that are tailored specifically for Linux on the desktop. Ubuntu fixes many Debian problems, with its primary strength being a 6-month release schedule, meaning nicely up to date packages in a named release without the need to use the "Unstable" Debian stream. We offer a customized installation of Ubuntu's latest "Lucid Lynx" (v 10.04) Long Term Support or the previous LTS version "Hardy Herron" (v 8.04 LTS) release with all the usual EmperorLinux modifications. Of course you will continue to benefit from APT for your package management. If you are comfortable with the less time-stable "stream" nature of the original APT-based distro, see our Debian offering below. We also have older Ubuntu installs available for special needs, including "Edgy Etf" (v 6.10 LTS), "Hardy Herron" (v 8.04 LTS), "Jaunty Jackelope" (v 9.04), and "Karmic Koala" (v 9.10).

We offer Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) to customers in the academic, government, and corporate sectors. Current version RHEL 5.4 in Client (Desktop) and Server (Advanced Platform) versions. Older versions WS, AS, and ES (vers. 3.x up to 3.6, 4.x up to 4.8) also available. We recommend that you as the end user obtain RHEL entitlements directly from Red Hat, and simply pass on to us the credentials needed to verify those entitlements. Then, as your authorized service provider, we can load RHEL on your system. This saves you the ownership transfer problem, and very possibly saves you money if your institution already has an RHEL site license agreement.

We offer Community ENTerprise OS (CentOS) 5.4 to those looking for full RHEL compatibility without a support contract from Red Hat. CentOS is built from the same RHEL sources, with all copyright and trademark protected materials removed. Older CentOS releases, 4.x up to 4.8 and 5.x are also available if your lab has standardized on those.

Debian is a good fit for the experienced Linux user who wants the flexibility and power of one of the most mature and proven distros around. Debian features APT, the Advanced Package Tool, which provides the most sophisticated package installation and removal, dependency tracking and updating available in the Linux world. We offer a customized installation of Debian's Testing (aka. "Etch") stream on our laptops, which has been tweaked with all the usual EmperorLinux stuff like the empkernel, EmpTool, and our custom ACPI stack. Debian's Stable (aka "Sarge") release is also available, but has fallen a bit behind in hardware support (call for details). If you want a more cutting-edge APT-based distro with all the latest goodies, see our Ubuntu offering above. Of course we include the empkernel to ensure full support of your laptop's hardware.

Open SuSE, currently version 11.2, is based on the familiar RPM package manager and enjoys a high level of internationalization support. This is the Open SuSE edition that is freely downloadable. The Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop (SLED10) edition is also available for an additional $100, and includes the SuSE Enterprise Desktop boxed set.

Slackware, currently version 12.2, is, of course, the original Linux distribution (the Emperor grew up on Slackware before Red Hat existed), and, as such, has many followers in research and academia. It is a bit harder for the novice to configure, but Slackware lets you live very close to the hardware, if you are comfortable with that. Base Slackware does not include Gnome any more. Since the Dropline Gnome project does such a good job, we include Dropline Gnome in all Slackware installs.

All of our systems are available dual boot. We also can provide data interchange partitions and customized partition sizes.