Trying Linux is easy—you can even install it on a USB drive or disc to try it out before committing. Enter the world of open-source here.

Note that yes, you can absolutely choose a non-Ubuntu distribution such as Linux Mint or Manjaro as long as it supports booting from a Live USB. Most popular distributions do.

Microsoft’s Surface Pro is a tablet designed to showcase the Windows 8 operating system. But that doesn’t mean Windows 8 is the only software the tablet can run.

Live Linux environments work just like a typical operating system but run entirely from a CD or USB stick – the latter being the most common choice these days. Since nothing is written to the ...