OT. Ubuntu best Linux for beginner

I have a laptop with no Windows license (apart from a PC with Windows 7

64 bit and a PC with XP SP3).

Thought I might try Linux. Is Ubuntu the easiest and most stable to start with?

Any advice on pitfalls etc.

Laptop has a 30 day install of XP on the c drive. Do I use another partition for the linux software and the third for other files?

TIA for any replies. I have been using MS Windows PCs since 3.1 and anticipate a steep learning curve.

Reply to
Invisible Man
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Linux is a multi distribution network with each one virtually locking in the user to that particular brand. Ubuntu has a foot print of 4 or

5 GB on a hard disc. Dream or any of the small Linux OSs have a footprint of 30 to 50 megabytes.

IIWY I'd get Linux Format and try the varieties they offer. Then get someone to make a USB live distro for you out of the one you like best.

Trouble spots are getting flash and stuff. So look for a version that gives immediate access to the stuff you want by trying it on a live DVD from the mag.

There are about 4 or 5 different Linux mags if you can find them. Smiths is about the only one with a multiple choice in the season. The distro will do virtually everything for you that the OS is geared for.

So the steep curve is about knowing how to get more stuff -and downloading it is just the start of the problem.

Reply to
Weatherlawyer

Download Ubuntu, burn it to a CD (remember you've downloaded an .iso image, so set the CD burner appropriately).

Reboot the machine (setting boot from CD in setup if necessary), then select "try ubuntu live distro".

This will take a long time to boot - but it does so only using the ram, and not touching the hard disk.

Play with it - find out what works and what doesn't - decide if you like it enough to do a full install.

If you do - the install menu will guide you through setting up a partition so your machine can do dual boot - after that, you'll be presented with a menu at switch-on to select windows or ubuntu.

Reply to
dom

The great thing about LInux, is that LiveCDs let you try before you commit. If you=CA=BBve got a DHCP-aware internet connection (like I have, router and cable modem) then it can even access the internet from the LiveCD. (This was what sold me on Linux. I was given a Ubuntu 8.04 CD, booted, and could access the internet. This feature is INVALUABLE if you are trying to fix a borked windoze installation, and need access to google ...)

Having been with Ubuntu since 8.04, I guess I=CA=BBm pretty happy with it. However ...

1) Never, ever upgrade, just because you can. Not sure why, but Ubuntu upgrades have always caused me pain. 2) Watch out for proprietary drivers. The Ubuntu philosophy means that even if they can supply you with a manufacturers driver for your hardware, they won=CA=BBt *as default* if it=CA=BBs not open-source. nVidia being a case in hand. 3) I would suggest you partition separate your data from system. That way upgrades are less risky. It also helps share data on dual boot systems. 4) GRUB is brilliant, but any subsequent (re)install of windoze will wipe it out, and you=CA=BBll think you=CA=BBll have lost your Ubuntu. You haven=CA=BBt 5) The Ubuntu community is by far and a way the largest. However some issues are generic, so whatever you settle on, they=CA=BBre a great place to ask.

Have you tried Mint ?

Reply to
Jethro

On Tue, 15 Jun 2010 19:51:06 +0100, Invisible Man wibbled:

Try what the others have said re: LiveCD mode.

I'd start with Ubuntu - it's based off Debian which is one of the distros with the highest quality*quantity (of programs) quotiant.

That is my preferred layout.

You won't. The installer had me confused the first time I ran it because it asked so little. You get a good default install and most (all) of hardware should come up live without half the buggering about Windows needs.

You might need to kick windows down into a smaller partition first.

You can expect to find OpenOffice (MS Office clone), Thunderbird, Firefox, and lots of random programs for editing, photos etc already installed.

Install Gimp and Inkscape for more serious raster and vector graphics (Inkscape has had a big jump recently and is bloody good).

If you tell it to allow the "restricted" package repository (not pure enough open source for Debian or not open source at all) you'll get MS fonts, Flash player, and a load of codecs that let you actually watch videos, play DVDs etc.

Gnome (the default window manager) is a little weird from a Windows POV but you can customise the "theme" and move everything around until it looks pretty much like Windows.

Kubuntu is Ubuntu's sister but defaults to KDE desktop which you may find more natural (and is equally as advanced as Gnome), so that's worth considering (but you can install Ubuntu, then add the "kubuntu-desktop" package and that gives you the choice of Gnome or KDE at login time.

Reply to
Tim Watts

On Ubuntu, if you go to System > Administration > Update Manager, it will update *all* your software that you installed using the package manager. You don't have to update applications etc separately. You can usually update whilst running applications and don't usually have to restart or reboot.

If you want to add some more software, go to System > Administration >

Synaptic Package Manager, search for what you want, and mark it for install. You can mark separate applications for install, then it will go away and do the installing for you.

Other linuxes will have similar commands in similar places.

Owain

Reply to
Owain

Thanks for all the helpful posts. I use Tbird for NGs and RSS. Firefox for browsing. Will be interesting geting to grips with a different OS.

Reply to
Invisible Man

its worth bookmarking this page

formatting link
the Ubuntu forums are incredibly busy but incredibly helpful. 

Reply to
Mark

Ah... windows 3.1 so presumably you are distantly familiar with DOS command prompt and editing autexec.bat and cd.. dir md rd and a few others I can't remember now. Command line operation for fixes is par for the course on Linux, but most of the time it's nothing more complicated than copying line-by-line commands dug out by Google.

Ubuntu is good, and fun to play with but if there are specific windows programs you just can't live without then I would suggest (if you decide to go for it) dumping anything to do with windows on the HD and making use of the the whole disk. As others have said, keep a partition separate for data and once you're up and running install a copy of windows as a "virtual machine" running in Ubuntu. (Windows XP SP3) would be a good bet, then strip out all the unnecessary windows crap you have a bare-bones windows to run those programs that refuse to work under Wine. I have dual boot on this PC but never go into Ubuntu as I use the occasional windows-only program and dual-booting just doesn't "do it" for me. I set my sons laptop up with XP as a virtual machine in Ubuntu as most of the programs they use at school are PC/Mac only. And if he ever comes across a web site that screws up under Ubuntu (Flash games sites usually) he can do it on the XP which means no dual-booting. It also means that his main PC is fairly safe from the horrors on the web that attack Windows.

Pete

Reply to
www.GymRatZ.co.uk

I'd suggest going for Mint, its a variant of Ubuntu. The difference between it and the base Ubuntu is that all the stuff you'll need is already setup, no messing about required. Its far easier to install and to learn than windows.

Partitioning with ubuntu or mint is the one thing that, if someone has no technical understanding, isnt totally goof proof. When partitioning I'd suggest a swap partition of 2 or 4G, not the default 1G.

NT

Reply to
NT

On Wed, 16 Jun 2010 02:25:58 -0700, NT wibbled:

Good point. If the SWAP is smaller than the RAM, you won't be able to use the hibernate feature (which dumps the RAM to SWAP for a fairly[1] quick restart right where you left off.

[1] suspend is quicker if the hardware supports it - stuff stays in RAM on low power maintenance - but of course, the PC has to have power even if it is nominally "off".
Reply to
Tim Watts

Bit less stable than say Debian Stable.

Whiuch distro you use is *almost* irrelevant.

Just try and see. Use the OS you have to download and burn a lot of distros, and simply install away.

The pitfalls are not distro specific, and are generally hardware related. Some support for some hardware is patchy, tricky, or nonexistent.

The distro represents a bunch of peoples favorite ways of selecting collating and distributing what amounts to standard source packages across nearly all platforms. EWhat they do is ensure that that code is all mutually compatible, and precompiled, that's all.

One issue thats a bit of a current bugbear, is 64 bit flash plug-ins. Simply not available for Linux in the new incarnation, and somewhat flawed in the old.

If its only 30 days, wipe it and start again.

I wouldn't bother partitioning - just back everything up on a USB stick till you know what your final configuration will be.

Assuming you are committed to ending up with Linux.

Its not too bad. Mostly stuff just works. It will be the odd case when it doesn't that will floor you.

Reply to
The Natural Philosopher

Ubuntu 10.04 LongTerm Support, if it works from the CD and you dont need 30 days of winxp then i'd click the option to let it use all the hard drive and click yes to almost everything.

The more standard vanilla your installation then the easier to get help.

A separate home partition is not easy, after 2 years of ubuntu i'm thinking of having one.. but I've only used command line once or twice- GUI is safer. and with ubuntu theres lots of support out there.

formatting link
I have a laptop with no Windows license (apart from a PC with Windows 7

Reply to
george [dicegeorge]

Reply to
george [dicegeorge]

A stand alone hard drive that you can use on any platform will cost 40 to 50 quid brand new.

It doesn't take much input to install even Ubuntu from a disc. It can take most of the weekend to install XP and you need 8 GB if you are updating an original distro circa 2001.

And that's without office and etc.

So hang on to your Microsoft as it will be something your children or grandchildren will not understand. Not that just showing them an old fashioned OS will help them understand the disenfanchisement of a mass market monopoly.

Smiths are offering a =A35 voucher this week for use next week on any purchases over 12 quid. They are selling a magazine style Linux introduction booklet complete with 5 distinct OSs for about =A315.

So next week you can get one for =A310, if you go and buy a newspaper or magazine there this week.

They also have copies of an older intro booklet with Ubuntiu 9 on it. I wasn't very taken with that. It's more or less the same adive you'd use for M$ as any other OS and just tells you the names of different programmes, IIRC.

Another alternative is a Linux magazine that has half a dozen versions of the Ubuntu kernel as its DVD.

For the life of me I can't understand why they just don't up their prices and offer USBs instead of DVDs.

They are absolutely ideal for a Laptop as you can use a variety of live versions on it and of course keep your favourites and anything you downloaded on either the Laptop and/or the USB.

The small distros available these days will allow the battery to run a lot longer than with a standard HDD install.

The other thing with a live distro is that you are more or less invisible with them.

Reply to
Weatherlawyer

but why buy whats free?

NT

Reply to
NT

To save on time and duff ISO burns. Plus a newbie gets some sort of hard copy free with the disc.

Having said that, I've a number of live CDs (actually DVDs) that have distros that won't hop up.

But then I am running an old AMD Athlon box with 1/2 GB RAM. Maybe cut down >1/2 GB Lives can't afford to be as discerning as a 4 or 5 GB DVD gobbler?

Reply to
Weatherlawyer

I've run ubuntu mint live on less than 500M before. I do notice though that with any particular machine, some linux live cds will run on it, some wont. Sometimes different machines, different discs. Not sure why.

NT

Reply to
NT

From 9.10, you have access to the software centre, which groups apps into functionality- nice touch.

Reply to
Jethro

Only if you are a total idiot.

MBQ

Reply to
Man at B&Q

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