linux distro for my Surface Pro 2

[anfor68]

I have a year old Surface Pro 2 that I would like to get better battery life. I've used Ubuntu before, but didn't really like it all that much with how "Mac" like it was. I would like a silmilar interface as Windows with a taskbar at the bottom with pinned apps and a start menu. Also, compatibility with touch is a plus, but not required.

 

I have the i5 with 4GB RAM and 128GB SSD. any suggestions?

 

I've looked it Lubuntu and Elementary OS, but I'm open to suggestions.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

EDIT: I would like to run Office 365 with OneDrive if possible (as all of my documents are there), but I can live without it. 

[TheKDub]

Perhaps try OpenSUSE? TechRadar gave it a 5/5 for tablet use, and it looks pretty nice too.

 

You could regard OpenSUSE KDE as the poorer cousin of the Plasma Active environment - what with Active being the new kid on the block, as it were. But while it may not look the most tablet friendly, it makes up for that when it comes to usability.

OpenSUSE 12.2 is a great OS on the desktop, but when used on the tablet, and especially after using the Plasma Active environment from Kubuntu, it and KDE look a little worn. It's true that you can customise it significantly, and introduce a more tablet look, but Start buttons will soon be endangered species. Its usability, however, is wonderful and, as we mentioned right at the start, installing the TabletPC pattern really makes the operating system come to life.

[Ian Schmid]

i would stick with the os that is on there.

for the battry problem you could just get a portable power bank (like the ones that are always advertised at the end of linus vidios)

if it charges by micro usb

[Oberon.Smite]

Zorin OS is a good OS for Linux beginners. The UI is very close to Windows. However, I will say my first Linux distro was Ubuntu, and IMO it's better.

[ThE_MarD]

Heyyo,

Lubuntu, Xubuntu or Linux Mint. They are the easiest to figure out plus they have a stable build.

If you want something more cutting edge? Manjaro is pretty darn good. It's built ontop of Arch Linux but more preconfigured out of the box.