[newbie] version for p3

[Bill Winegarden]

Hi, I am currently running LM 2007 on my Inspiron 9100. A friend wishes to try "linux" for the first time on his older laptop....a P3 around 1000Mhz, I think. Which version of Mandriva would the group recommend (or other distro?) for this first timer. Of course, he's a windows users so a familiar look would probably make the transition easier. KDE or Gnome.   Anyway....any suggestions?   tia, basic