For the second installment of this PCstats guide, we're looking at something a little more permanent. We're going to take one of the most popular and easy to use free Linux distributions, SUSE Personal 9.1 and explore the process of installing Linux onto your hard drive as a full operating system. We'll look at how to configure your desktop using the KDE desktop manager, get a grasp on your personal files in the Linux file system and connect to the Internet for web browsing and email. We'll also teach you how to make Linux co-exist peacefully with your existing Windows installation, so you can use both. This particular version of Linux was chosen because its small footprint and easy to use configuration tools make it an excellent way to reduce the often-daunting learning curve that the Linux OS can present. We firmly believe that learning to use an operating system productively is the first and most important step in achieving full familiarity and expertise with that system.