I wanted to try out a few of the "Windows Replacement" type Linux distros, so I started installing a few on virtual machines that I created using the techniques described in this PCLug meeting. I was extremely impressed with the ease of installation and the amount of polish, so I figured I'd setup some machines and let you guys install for yourselves to give you the opportunity to surf around distros without having to worry about backing up and in the company of some experienced Linux users to help you with any problems / questions.

Freespire - Debian based, community driven, facilitates install of proprietary drivers/software.

Xandros - Commercial distro, but we are using the Community Edition, based on COREL Linux, corporate attention to detail.

Mepis - Debian based, easy to install/try, doesn't seem heavily commercial, but they will sell you early access to the latest version.

Ubuntu - Debian based, very polished, company backed but not commercial.

Fedora - Red Hat based, not commercial but you can buy Red Hat Workstation which is the commercial version.

Vector Linux - Slackware based, small and fast, not commercial.

Arch Linux - not based on anything else, lightweight and fast, no GUI config utilities.