New to Ubuntu are Hardware Drivers a problem

For newer computers I would say that device drivers are normally not a problem. The newer Dell computers are good and pretty much work out of the box.

I would suggest using the LiveCD version to test it out. It might run a bit slower, but you'll get a sense of how your computer will run.

If you give me some more info about your computer such as graphics card, sound card, etc... I could be a bit more precise.

Ubuntu and Linux are a great way to learn about computers! Most of the time, hardware won't give you much trouble, but there can be exceptions.

First tip would be to just try the Live CD. There's no commitment - Ubuntu loads exclusively to RAM and doesn't touch your hard drive. Just stick in the CD and reboot your computer to try Ubuntu out (it will run slower this way than it will after it is installed to your hard disk). Removing the CD and restarting the computer makes everything go back to normal. You can test everything out to see if something doesn't work. (If something doesn't work, it can typically be made to work after a little googling.) Desktop computers usually require less tinkering than laptops, since laptop hardware is unique to the model you have. If you have a laptop, visit http://www.linux-laptop.net/ and find your model for some great compatibility information.

The most difficult kind of hardware to get working perfectly would probably be ATI and NVIDIA video cards (Intel cards work better, since Intel contributes to Linux more), followed up with wireless network cards.

Your graphics card should work when Ubuntu is installed (or when you run the Live CD - do this first), but depending on the model, some features may not be available with the default open source driver, such as 3D graphics support. Ubuntu does provide access to proprietary graphics card binaries that are produced by ATI or NVIDIA through the "Restricted Drivers Manager" which makes installing more workable graphics drivers easy, if you have any problems. For more info, you can do a google search for the model of your graphics card and "ubuntu" to see what comes up, and to find information about how people have gotten everything working. Also, since you sound like you are interested in the fancy desktop effects provided by Compiz, google your graphics card model and Compiz for some information from people who have tried to get Compiz working with your specific graphics hardware.

If your wireless card does not work by default, you can use the Restriced Drivers Manager to install drivers for it, or you may want to try using a program called ndiswrapper, which makes the windows drivers work in Ubuntu.