By now, I bet you're itching to create your very own Linux Mint installation. However, as mentioned earlier, it's important to test out any Linux distribution before installing it. One of the major benefits of live media is that it gives you a chance to see how well Mint will handle your specific computer. Take a moment to boot into the live environment and test out your hardware to ensure that everything works. For example, if you have a wireless card, make sure that you're able to connect to a wireless network. In addition, listen to audio and playback video (YouTube is a good test of the latter) to make sure the multimedia functions properly. If there are any other things that are important to you, test those too before installing them. In this way, you'll be able to discover any possible issues and identify fixes or work-arounds before you remove your existing operating system.

If you have any issues with Mint while using the live media, a...