Should I switch to Ubuntu or another Linux distro on my PPC?

Well if you are a starter on Linux try Ubuntu that is a starter type linux. And after that I would recommend Debian, which I use for all of my servers, or Fedora which is another good distro.

Ubuntu is what I use, but I'm pretty much a Linux n00b.

Be aware, though, that you will still run into architecture type problems in Linux. There is a significantly less install base of Linux on PPC machines, so there will be a lot less drivers written for PPC architectures. NVidia likes to slack on PPC, so if your machine has an NVidia card, I'd advise against it.

Ubuntu is pretty easy to use, so I'd go with that. PPC is kind of tricky though, I don't know if it's still supported in the current Ubuntu release.

Ubuntu is the way to go. There is no "starter". Ubuntu is hands down the most evolved and actively developed Linux variety. I use it on 3 computers I own, one of which is dual booted to windows 7 occasionally.

Keep in mind that Linux is a smart person OS. You have to take the time to learn it. Once you do, you will realize how much apple and Microsoft limit you and make bad choices in the name of "user experience". Windows allows malicious code to be run from web browsers. Mac gives you about 3 choices and if you understand all three you have just obtained guru status.

I run all operating systems under ubuntu via virtual machine. Switch over and you can recycle your old windows keys the same way.

I would go with Ubuntu if you're new to Linux. Ubuntu is very user friendly, and makes a wonderful first distro. However, there are times where it isn't that stable. Then, there is Mandriva. Mandriva is a very good, and stable Linux distro. But, it might be a bit hard for someone who's not used to Linux.

Ubuntu is my favorite distro, but I am also a big fan of Fedora. Either one sounds like it could suit you well.

If you know what's going on...you could roll your own Linux distro.

I use Lucid Puppy 5 on my old laptop. It a Puppy Linux Distro based on Linux. It serves my needs without being too bloated and slow.

I use to use Ubuntu on my old PPC Macs, but after version 8.04, I've had nothing but problems. The wireless drivers failed to work properly with security like WPA2, I've had the OS corrupt itself multiple times, I've had corrupted installations with strange bugs, etc.

I've now switched to the PPC version of Debian, and after 5 weeks of using it, I've had no big problems, everything works flawlessly. I've also noticed little to no difference between Debian and Ubuntu, especially when it comes to easy of use.

The official PPC version of Ubuntu was cancelled when Apple made the intel switch, it is now simply continued by a small community. Debian, however, is still officially supported.

Better use of system resources and access to thousands of repositories full of open source apps.

I dual booted in to Win 7 for a couple of weeks to make sure I could still be productive on a Linux system. Then I wiped it clean took the dive on both my main desktop and my netbook and haven't looked back. I have VirtualBox in a crunch such as installing a firmware driver under windows. And, 3 other computers in the home office with Win 7 on them if I need a pure Windows box for something.

I have years of Linux experience myself.. but that was pre-2002. So, I went the Ubuntu route as well so that I could re-acquaint myself with Linux. Probably stick with Ubuntu though. It seems to do everything I need it to and has a highly productive team of developers (staff and volunteers).

With the size of hard drives today, there's no reason that people shouldn't at least try Linux out even in a Live or small partitioned version.