Which Linux distribution that is more suitable for intel and why?

Is there a free Unix-based distribution that I could install and would just work?

• I would very much love to find a free Unix-based distribution (BSD or Linux) that I could install and it would just works, without weeks of customization. I have an Asus and an Acer (both notebooks) and have tried Ubuntu, Lubuntu, Xubuntu, Debian, Mint, Mint/Debian, Arch and probably others I'm not remembering now. I was going to try FreeBSD, but heard that many times you have to compile software for it (because the repositories are not that complete yet). I know it is one command, but it takes a long time and that kind of headache I want to avoid. And I don't want to buy a Mac and be tied to Apple forever (even though this seams to be what I will end up doing one day if I have the money). EDIT: Hardware info for the Asus (which is the one I am trying right now): Asus with Intel Core i7, 4GB RAM, 500GB HD.

• Answer:

  "Just work"(TM) depends on the exact hardware components. It could depend on exact brand and model, not just something as generic as the processor. Can't tell percent of how much recently released notebooks will just work, how much will work, but with some tweak (like driver download or kernel parameter) and how much will just not work with current distributions. But focusing in current distributions, i would go with ones that had been released after your notebook, and maybe that have some community behind that do testing and reporting in different hardware to tell for sure if it works or what to do for making it so. Ubuntu have i.e. the http://www.ubuntu.com/certification/make/Asus/ page that tells you which models of Asus computers are certified to work with Ubuntu. The other alternative is to do some search on people installing linux distributions on your exact laptop models to see if they succeeded and if had to do something extra to make all work. In the end, whatever recent enough distribution you install, you will have most linux current linux software running on it, different distributions mostly have different ways to install or administer them. If you want, just put boot from a live usb (you can create it with i.e. http://www.linuxliveusb.com/), check that all works, and if do, install it. If you think that is too complex, think that for Windows the manufacturer already installed it for you, made sure that it works with all the included hardware and installed the needed specific drivers (that each component usually provides the drivers for windows), but for them wasn't just a "just work" neither.