Can anyone explain ubuntu/linux

[2Loose]

+1 to Wubi - great way to try it out. It runs faster than from the Live CD and you can also add whatever programs you like to it (Gimp, Amarok etc), which you can't from the Live CD.

I will say that unless you have problems or just like trying new stuff out, there isn't really a reason to bother (although who doesn't like trying new stuff out?). Probably the most compelling reason to try it out is the lack or viruses or malware that affect Linux, as almost every windows user has problems with that at some point or other. (Shhhh though, the more people use Linux, the more likely it is to be targeted by the bad men.)

 

[HJ]

Not true if you select the right options - you can delete pations and do quick formats from the install menu - Vista and 7 have a GUI where XP and previous had DOS based shells. But I take your point that they have made it easier (I think when i tried Ubuntu it was V7).

One thing to make it easier - is rename your partitions something like Vista or XP or whatever - and then you won't be trying to double guess which partition to write over.

I haven't tried installing Vista or 7, so thanks for the update.

Renaming your partitions is a good idea as it make things a lot easier to follow when partitioning a drive.

Ubuntu has come a long way since Feisty Fawn and Gutsy Gibbon, the names are just as stupid but the important things like hardware support and usability have improved a lot, it worth giving it another try...

 

[rh100]

I haven't tried installing Vista or 7, so thanks for the update.

Renaming your partitions is a good idea as it make things a lot easier to follow when partitioning a drive.

Ubuntu has come a long way since Feisty Fawn and Gutsy Gibbon, the names are just as stupid but the important things like hardware support and usability have improved a lot, it worth giving it another try...

I may do that. I have one laptop that may make an ideal test bed, fairly old Toshiba with a 2ghz celeron with 1gb ram - do you think it will run standard ubuntu? I'd quite like to master the linux/unix command line - and practising on a PC that I also get practical use out of always makes learning easier

2loose - I think you are right what you say about the virus problem - if it goes mainstream - it would surely become a target for malware, are there any packages available that is up to the standard of Kaspersky for eg for Linux?

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I may do that. I have one laptop that may make an ideal test bed, fairly old Toshiba with a 2ghz celeron with 1gb ram - do you think it will run standard ubuntu? I'd quite like to master the linux/unix command line - and practising on a PC that I also get practical use out of always makes learning easier

2loose - I think you are right what you say about the virus problem - if it goes mainstream - it would surely become a target for malware, are there any packages available that is up to the standard of Kaspersky for eg for Linux?

I am on Ubuntu, and I don't run a anti virus, I am not aware there is any need to, the only thing I run is the NoScript add on for the Firefox web browser. Your laptop should run Ubuntu ok, you may need to spend a little time sorting out drivers after the install, if you do run into problems this forum http://ubuntuforums.org/index.php is a good source of information.

 

[2Loose]

2loose - I think you are right what you say about the virus problem - if it goes mainstream - it would surely become a target for malware, are there any packages available that is up to the standard of Kaspersky for eg for Linux?

I think it is due to the way that X11 and GnomeKDE are separated in Linux, but there is no Linux program that compares to the polished UI of Kaspersky, but Clam AV and AVG are both as capable of finding and killing nasties if you have them...

However +1 to Dave R for the NoScript plugin for firefox probably being the best method to ensure that you never get any nasties in the first place, for Windows and Linux imho.

 

[HJ]

I may do that. I have one laptop that may make an ideal test bed, fairly old Toshiba with a 2ghz celeron with 1gb ram - do you think it will run standard ubuntu? I'd quite like to master the linux/unix command line - and practising on a PC that I also get practical use out of always makes learning easier

2loose - I think you are right what you say about the virus problem - if it goes mainstream - it would surely become a target for malware, are there any packages available that is up to the standard of Kaspersky for eg for Linux?

I am currently using a Toshiba satellite pro 6000, it 8 years old with a 1.20 GHz Pentium III and 1 Gb of ram running Ubuntu 9.10 without difficulty. The only problem you might encounter initially is if you have a Trident CyberBlade XP Ai1 Display controller (rather than a separate graphics card) as you will only get 800 x 600 screen resolution, but this can easily be corrected . As for malware problems, Ubuntu comes with Clam AV which runs so quietly most users don't even know that it's there and a firewall.

 

[HJ]

Oh and the other thing you need to do when you first set up Ubuntu is to get the restricted extras pack, this has all the bits you need for MP3 and video playback which they can't bundle with the main distro because of copyright or legal issues in some countries i.e. the US.

 

[rh100]

Great advice everyone - thanks - I think I shall have a go some time soon, will let you know how I get on.

 

[JamesAC]

Using a "live" disc will give you an idea of the look and feel for linux and the open office software, but performance from the cd will be very s l o w , because the apps have to be unzipped from the disc as you use them.

You might well be impressed with the open office software. I was particularly struck by the way its "Calc" spreadsheet program could open a damaged XL spreadsheet that MS Excel wouldn't touch!

I run Debian (a cousin of ubuntu) on a dual boot system with XP. However, I did install a second HD for the linux!

 

[yenrod]

Yes



Yes



Define quicker? It will certainly boot and shut down faster, as to whether application run faster, that is harder to say....



If you want to try it, it is easy:

• just download a copy,
• burn it to a CD,
• then reboot your system and hold down F12 (or which ever key you need to get into the BIOS),
• choose boot from CD and follow the instructions.

It can run from the CD without making any changes to your computer. If you decide that to like it, then there is an icon on the desktop which will let you install it on you computer alongside Vista, so that you have the choice of OS in the future, known as Dual Booting.

Thanks HJ - thats the kind of easy answers I like... esp. for stupid in regards to comp. speak

 

[amnesia]

I only use my Vista partition to update my sat nav and phone now... Ubuntu does the rest.



Which reminds me... have you seen the new Welsh sat nav device ? It's the Tom Tom Jones