# Linux



## Greg

I've noticed that a few people recommended this OS on the PC or Mac thread. From just browsing the web, I've seen that there are a number of Linux OS's out there (Red Hat, Ubuntu, etc...). Is there any particular one that is most recommended for the average everyday computer user (internet, email, word processor, etc...)?


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## panta dokimazete

Ubuntu is good - take a look at the Edubuntu image - pretty cool.


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## Devin

Just curious: Have you tried using Linux before? If not, you should realize that Linux is simply no where near as compatible or easy to use as either Windows or Mac. It may take a lot of studying to figure things out. It definitely shouldn't replace Windows or Mac as the only OS you use until you're all geeked out for it. 

That being said, Ubuntu is definitely the golden boy of Linux Distros as of late. It's stable and easy to use and install. That's definitely a good place to start. PCLinuxOS is also pretty good one for new linux users. 

However, in choosing a distrobution, you need to make sure that the one you choose supports the hardware you have...especially when it comes to any modems/routers you're going to use to get online. Once you're online using Linux, you can search around to find fixes to other problems as they arise.

One thing that you should try is getting a distrobution that has what's called a LiveCD, which basically allows you to boot into linux from a CD without installing anything. 

Hope that helps.


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## Staphlobob

Okay, so I downloaded Ubuntu. But I can't do anything with it. The file extension is .iso, so when I click on it to get it started the dialogue box says it's unrecognizable. 

Any suggestions?


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## panta dokimazete

Staphlobob said:


> Okay, so I downloaded Ubuntu. But I can't do anything with it. The file extension is .iso, so when I click on it to get it started the dialogue box says it's unrecognizable.
> 
> Any suggestions?



Do you have CD burner software?

If so, what type?


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## Staphlobob

jdlongmire said:


> Do you have CD burner software?
> 
> If so, what type?



Yes. It's a standard DVD-RW drive that comes with a Windows desktop.


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## youthevang

You want to burn the .iso files to CD's or a DVD if you have a DVD burner. Then pop in the first cd or DVD and restart your computer, so that it will start to load from the CD or DVD. You can install it as a dual boot, meaning that windows and ubuntu will both be on your harddrive.


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## Staphlobob

youthevang said:


> You want to burn the .iso files to CD's or a DVD if you have a DVD burner. Then pop in the first cd or DVD and restart your computer, so that it will start to load from the CD or DVD. You can install it as a dual boot, meaning that windows and ubuntu will both be on your harddrive.



Oh. Okay. No problem.


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## Herald

I'm running Vista and burned a CD for Ubuntu. How do I get it to work? I was told I should boot from the CD. I put the CD in and rebooted but nothing happens. ???? Not sure how to get it to work.


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## VaughanRSmith

BaptistInCrisis said:


> I'm running Vista and burned a CD for Ubuntu. How do I get it to work? I was told I should boot from the CD. I put the CD in and rebooted but nothing happens. ???? Not sure how to get it to work.



Did you burn the .iso as an image, or did you just burn the .iso file onto a CD? If it is the latter, you did it wrong. You need to open the .iso with your burning program, and then burn it's contents onto CD.


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## Devin

Another word of warning: In order to install Linux, you're going to have to partition your harddrive. That's definitely something you need to read up on before doing it. If you don't, and you mess it up...you could lose all your data. Linux has made this process a lot easier in it's recent installation setups, but it's still something to be prepared for.


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## Staphlobob

BaptistInCrisis said:


> I'm running Vista and burned a CD for Ubuntu. How do I get it to work? I was told I should boot from the CD. I put the CD in and rebooted but nothing happens. ???? Not sure how to get it to work.



Same here. 

Looks like we've got to do some homework on understanding the difference between an iso image and the real thing - not to mention partitioning hard drives. 

Sheesh! Maybe I'll just stick with XP.


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## panta dokimazete

BaptistInCrisis said:


> I'm running Vista and burned a CD for Ubuntu. How do I get it to work? I was told I should boot from the CD. I put the CD in and rebooted but nothing happens. ???? Not sure how to get it to work.



you'll need boot into the startup menu - this is prior to the Windows boot and change the boot sequence for CDROM as the first boot drive as opposed to the hard drive.


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## panta dokimazete

Staphlobob said:


> Same here.
> 
> Looks like we've got to do some homework on understanding the difference between an iso image and the real thing - not to mention partitioning hard drives.
> 
> Sheesh! Maybe I'll just stick with XP.



Don't give up!

Take a look here on iso's

here for boot order


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## JohnV

I too was interested in Linux from the other thread. So I began reading up on it. I couldn't find a downloadable version of it that I could understand; so thanks, JD, for the link. 

My intention was to load it on my desktop PC, which is not the computer that I use now. I got this laptop, and went wireless, and that kind of did in my ME desktop PC. It didn't have the memory to go to the wireless contraption that hooks into the phone line. I wanted to wipe the computer and start over, but then began thinking that this was a good opportunity to try Linux. 

I've got a bootable disk now, and I'm going to try it later. 

You had a good help site listed here before, but now I can't find it. I was following it when I was downloading. Then I had to go to work, so I closed everything and put the computer to sleep. But now I can't find the page back. What happened to it?


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## JOwen

Ububtu rocks! I switched to linux two weeks ago and I'll never look back. Finally, I'm out of the matrix .


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## historyb

Greg said:


> I've noticed that a few people recommended this OS on the PC or Mac thread. From just browsing the web, I've seen that there are a number of Linux OS's out there (Red Hat, Ubuntu, etc...). Is there any particular one that is most recommended for the average everyday computer user (internet, email, word processor, etc...)?



Yes, the best for someone new to Linux is PCLinuxOS. It is very user friendly and has a magazine and some OEM Computer sellers who sell PC's with Pre-Installed PCLinuxOS. I use it and recommend it highly.

I am also a proofreader for the Magazine and sale PC's with PCLinuxOS installed.


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## Kenneth_Murphy

You may want to get a version of Linux that can run completely from a CD image. Then you can load this on your computer without affecting your windows install. You can't easily save files (except to a flash drive for example) but you can run and look at all the standard software. This would let you test drive Linux before going through all the trouble of a standard installation. Though if you do repartition your hardrive you can have both XP and Linux on the same computer.


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## panta dokimazete

JohnV said:


> You had a good help site listed here before, but now I can't find it. I was following it when I was downloading. Then I had to go to work, so I closed everything and put the computer to sleep. But now I can't find the page back. What happened to it?



?? not following - looks like all my posts are here and complete...


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## raekwon

I've got Ubuntu, Kubuntu, and XP installations on my Mac mini via Parallels Desktop. Good stuff.


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## Staphlobob

Kenneth_Murphy said:


> You may want to get a version of Linux that can run completely from a CD image. Then you can load this on your computer without affecting your windows install. You can't easily save files (except to a flash drive for example) but you can run and look at all the standard software. This would let you test drive Linux before going through all the trouble of a standard installation. Though if you do repartition your hardrive you can have both XP and Linux on the same computer.



Did that. I like Ubuntu and would like to have it on my computer. But I would need to take some time to learn more about it (e.g., how to import email addresses, synchronize with Palm, etc.) So I would want to partition my harddrive. 

Any ideas - very simply explaining every single thing - on how to do that?


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## JohnV

jdlongmire said:


> ?? not following - looks like all my posts are here and complete...


I had a help page up taking me through the steps, and now I can't find it back. I went through every link on this page, and I can't find it back. 

But that's OK, JD. I tried a start up on my ME computer, and it didn't do anything. So I installed the components and then ran it. If it corrupted anything, well I was going to wipe it all anyways. But it worked fine. 

It was just a test. I'm going to wipe the computer and restart and reboot everything. I'm going to try partitioning the harddrive, and then run the two systems side by side. If I can rehook to the internet, then I'm going to try to replace the Windows programs altogether. I don't know if that will work, though, because its a HP Pavilion, and may only work on a Microsoft system as a base.


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## panta dokimazete

Staphlobob said:


> Did that. I like Ubuntu and would like to have it on my computer. But I would need to take some time to learn more about it (e.g., how to import email addresses, synchronize with Palm, etc.) So I would want to partition my harddrive.
> 
> Any ideas - very simply explaining every single thing - on how to do that?



take a look


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## Staphlobob

jdlongmire said:


> take a look



Thanks for the info. However you can tell my ignorance in these things by the fact that, even though I looked up "partitions" I'm at a total loss as to what it's all about. It's worse than Greek, worse than Latin. It's actually "Hebrew for Comuter Geeks." 

Perhaps, if I really want to get into this stuff, I'll spend the $70 for the Norton Partition Magic.


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## Herald

jdlongmire said:


> you'll need boot into the startup menu - this is prior to the Windows boot and change the boot sequence for CDROM as the first boot drive as opposed to the hard drive.



JD - okay...I was able to get my machine to boot from CD. I get the Ubuntu page and start the process of tyring to use it but it hangs up in a DOS-type mode. Over and over again I get lines of text that saying "booting from kernel" and "error found." I have no idea what is going on.


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## VaughanRSmith

Staphlobob said:


> Thanks for the info. However you can tell my ignorance in these things by the fact that, even though I looked up "partitions" I'm at a total loss as to what it's all about. It's worse than Greek, worse than Latin. It's actually "Hebrew for Comuter Geeks."
> 
> Perhaps, if I really want to get into this stuff, I'll spend the $70 for the Norton Partition Magic.


A partition is a division you make in your hard drive. It's the equivalent of having a big field you can store sheep in, and putting a fence down the middle so you have two fields.

So, one field, that the computer recognises as two fields, and you can install different operating systems on each of them, and select which field the computer should boot into.


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## Devin

After reading/posting in this thread, I felt like going back and trying Linux again. I had it installed on a desktop, but I use my laptop more than anything...so I decided to install openSUSE on it. I'm very pleased with it. While it recognized my wireless card, I still had to use ndiswrapper to get it to work, but it's working fine now. Linux is definitely making leaps in easy of use, but they have some ways to go. For now, though, I think I'll be able to use it to do my normal routine (checking mail, message boards, blogs, etc).

Here's to the end of microsoft


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