Posted on 04/02/2008 6:56:37 AM PDT by Brainhose
Before you do this get a copy of something like Partition Magic if you don’t get it just right. I did this before I finally upgraded to Vista and frankly, I didn’t want to be bothered with all the aggravation. Ubuntu can be downloaded and it is easy enough, but the bootup menu can be troublesome and may lock up your computer as it did mine. I finally got a work around off the internet which I installed but the truth is that I didn’t see the point of it. As I understand it only about 1% of the PC population uses Linux.
Good luck. You will need it.
For someone just getting their feet wet with Linux, you can’t go wrong with Ubuntu. The nice thing is that you can try it out as a “Live CD” before you install it on a HD partition. If I were you, I would go download a Ubuntu ISO right away and start playing with it. If you are happy with it, then there’s an icon on the desktop that will allow you to install it to a partition.
Yep, get the live CD, play with it.
Excellent advice.
I concur that working directly from a CD is the most foolproof way to try out the system. Of course the obvious downside is that is much slower than working off the hard drive. I guess you might install it on a flash drive if it will boot from it but that is beyond my expertise. Ubuntu can also be ordered free and I received three copies of it in about two or three weeks if you don’t want to download it from the internet.
Boot from the live-cd. It will fire up Ubuntu and let you take it for a test drive without installing anything on your system. From the desktop you can start up the installer which will walk you through setting up a dual boot system, including the partitioning.
Obviously, as with any such endeavor, back up your important data first, etc, etc.
I agree with everything that has been said about Ubuntu. I am a senior and I have successfully installed three different releases of Ubuntu using the “Ubuntu Forums” and trial and error, (ignorance and chance,LOL) There can be a considerable learning curve depending on how computer literate you are but each release becomes more and more user friendly. There is a new release coming out the end of April, you may want to wait for it. I like Ubuntu well enough that I use it for all of my computer needs, surfing, banking, email etc. If you play computer games you will still need microsoft.
I haven't used anything MS at home in 3 years and I haven't missed it or the anti-virus or anti-spyware, either. It isn't as difficult as those who have tried and failed would have you believe.
The main thing I dislike about dual booting is that it means I have to spend a few minutes to switch, and that I can't be doing two things at once, on both the Windows boot and the Linux boot.
My preferred setup now is either Linux (for myself, a Linux kernel hacker) or Mac OS X (for my wife, who just likes things to work), while running Windows in a virtual machine (VMware on Linux, or Parallels on Mac OS X). We only run in Windows what we have to, such as, in our case, Quicken and Tax Cut.
But such virtual machine setups cost extra money for the better virtual machine software (VMware or Parallels), and really are best done on systems that have enough RAM memory to hold both operating environments in memory at the same time -- twice as much memory as you need for either O.S. by itself.
The only time I fire up a dual boot system into a native Windows boot is to run a game for a few hours of escapism.
Once done, I would recommend SimplyMepis as the Linux choice. I've done dual boot with Ubuntu also. I like SimplyMepis better. It handled my wireless interface flawlessly where Ubuntu had to tweaked, prodded and cajoled.
The best website I found for a step by step guide is here:
Creating a Dual-Boot Windows XP and Ubuntu Laptop
It's for Ubuntu but can be used for other distros.
Good luck!
I would use Fedora Core, its Redhat’s free version with live update support.
Install Fedora first and leave a partition for the Windows install. I use this setup often. Good mix.
Have you ever looked at Moneydance?
Thanks for the link!
My wife uses Quicken for her business and not being a computer nerd like myself, will not change.
The two of us are going through a divorce, and I have all our joint finances for many years in Quicken, so I will continue using Quicken for the few more months it takes us to complete the divorce. My separate finances, as a single person, are starting afresh, in Moneydance. I will likely find a web based or Linux based tax program as well, starting next year, and then my Windows system (Win XP SP2 inside VMware workstation on an openSUSE Linux box) will go unused for months at a time.
Another reason to give Ubuntu a try - they have the largest, most active forum. There’s a section just for newbies. This is so helpful when you’re full of questions!
Mint Linux: Ubuntu plus extras for a better out of the box experience
OpenSUSE: Best post-install support of hardware
Sabayon Linux: Cutting edge experience see here
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