swee'pea99
Legendary Member
Thanks. And then just double-click on it and 'install within windows', yes?
Is anybody else using Linux?
- Thread starter Chris S
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
mybike
Grumblin at Garmin on the Granny Gear
- Location
- Not 'emel 'empstead
Use it to burn a cd/dvd. Then put the disk in drive and run from there.
martint235
Dog on a bike
- Location
- Welling
Sorry this isn't meant to be insulting but I don't think you're in a place to start attempting to create a dual boot machine. If you've used Windows for a while, you will have more than a little stored on there. Get this wrong and you'll lose it.
My advice is Google around a bit looking for Live CD or Live USB versions of Linux. They'll let you try the system from the associated media without altering your main hard drive in anyway.
Just my twopenneth.
swee'pea99
Legendary Member
FrankCrank
Old layabout
....a short while back I installed Mint on my 4 year old Lenovo Ideapad. Had it on there for about a month, but then had to go back to W7. Wouldn't recognise my phone or the wife's, and then one day refused to see the router in the house. As I was seeking a reliable OS, had no choice but to return to the old faithful. Shame, as the idea of sticking 2 fingers up to MS did appeal. My neighbour swears by Linux and tinkers a lot, but even he couldn't figure what was happening. His are all 32 bit, mine is 64 bit. Maybe, just a guess, as most people run Linux on older kit, the 32 bit has most of the glitches ironed out. I added an SSD drive before going back to W7 - runs sweet as a nut now, so I'm a happy bunny......
slowmotion
Quite dreadful
- Location
- lost somewhere
Ubuntu is fantastic for recovering all your files when Windows won't even boot after a major viral attack, and I'm not an expert by any means. The guy behind the counter at the local beer establishment gave me a free five minute tutorial between serving other customers, and I was up and running again within a couple of hours, having never heard of it beforehand.
martint235
Dog on a bike
- Location
- Welling
Another note, if you set up a dual boot with Windows 10 Linux won't be able to share files without a little bit of messing about. Nothing too onerous but worth bearing in mind
D
Deleted member 1258
Guest
I'm on a customised version of Lubuntu, its very basic as it comes out of the box but works well. I've been on Linux for about eight years now, last time I used windows I was on XP. What I did with Lubuntu was, after I installed it, I took off most of the basic stuff that shipped with it and installed the stuff I use regularly.
Last edited by a moderator:
OP
OP
Chris S
Legendary Member
- Location
- Birmingham
When I installed it on my laptop it wouldn't even boot from the hard drive. You could hear it trying the CD drive so I put the disk in there and it booted up. I then downloaded it to my hard-drive. When I did this I got the choice of installing it alongside Windows or replacing it.
If you do decide to buy a disk then don't get the Black Lab one, like I did. It will run OK but it's literally years out of date. I took me over an hour to download and install all the updates later.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Black-Lab...910386?hash=item3cde5156f2:g:psIAAOxyjxlTL~cF
It's also rather pricey at nearly £2.00!
newfhouse
Resolutely on topic
As with any software, don't buy from unknown sources unless you're happy and confident to verify the contents. Even with a download you should confirm the checksums (and MD5 isn't enough). Linux Mint had a recent attack where at least one ISO was subverted to carry a payload and download links were modified on their site to point at the compromised image. I doubt they are alone, but the Mint team are more open than many and have made full disclosure.
@swee'pea99 This isn't intended to discourage you. XP is terminally flawed and unsupported from a security point of view. Nobody should be trusting their personal data to it these days. (I work for an employer that still runs XP on most desktops
) As @martint235 suggests upthread, install your ISO to a disc or USB stick and try before you commit. It will run a bit slower from disc but it will give you an idea of your hardware compatibility.
D
Deleted member 1258
Guest
As with any software, don't buy from unknown sources unless you're happy and confident to verify the contents. Even with a download you should confirm the checksums (and MD5 isn't enough). Linux Mint had a recent attack where at least one ISO was subverted to carry a payload and download links were modified on their site to point at the compromised image. I doubt they are alone, but the Mint team are more open than many and have made full disclosure.
@swee'pea99 This isn't intended to discourage you. XP is terminally flawed and unsupported from a security point of view. Nobody should be trusting their personal data to it these days. (I work for an employer that still runs XP on most desktops
I didn't realise that Linux had become a target, I thought most of the time it gets left alone.
newfhouse
Resolutely on topic
That's still mostly true but don't believe that just because it's Linux it's a bombproof solution to security problems. Obscurity has helped in the past but sensible (and simple) precautions are needed whatever the OS. To me, Linux is the best compromise between usability, compatibility and security on the desktop. On servers I prefer OpenBSD.
KneesUp
Guru
Dual booting with Windows 7 and above is a pain in the bum, as Windows doesn't like anything else being able to make changes to the hard drive (that was my interpretation anyway)
I ran Ubuntu on a USB3 memory stick for a while before I was happy with it on my current laptop, and then binned Windows altogether.
I ran Ubuntu on a USB3 memory stick for a while before I was happy with it on my current laptop, and then binned Windows altogether.
martint235
Dog on a bike
- Location
- Welling
Windows 7 doesn't play too badly at dual boot. However Windows 10 doesn't shut down by default, it has a "hybrid" shutdown which really hibernates the file structure leaving it locked and completely unavailable to Linux. It can be mounted as read only from the terminal or you can alter the way W10 shuts down but that slows down the boot back into W10.
KneesUp
Guru
I didn't get Windows 7 or 8 to play. XP was ok as I recall. I have a VLC connection to my work desktop PC for if I really, really need Windows, but apart from accessing the (windows only) software that is the sole reason I own the desktop, I haven't needed to.
