How to set up Linux with GUI as 2nd OS???

turgon

I would like to set up Linux as a second OS on my computer.

I currently have a PC with Windows XP installed on it. The other day I took a hard drive out of another computer and put it in mine. So now I have a C drive and a E drive.

Now what is the situation regarding having Linux as a second OS ? I have heard talk of a boot CD, and I have done a bit of research, but Im still a bit puzzled. Would I put in the CD and when this CD is in Linux would load instead of Windows? Additionally I have heard of partitioning and have a program promt you which OS to load. Only problem is the computer is the familys so this isnt much of an option.

Also could anyone recommend a Linux distribution (and a GUI, I cant command line)? I have obviously only used windows up to now, but Im used to computers and would be willing to adapt. I would primarily be using Linux for web development btw.

Thanks for any help and sorry if I come off as naive/assuming!!

FruitLover

Ubuntu is easy to get to grips with. You'll be better off installing it to the hard disk rather than booting from the CD each time. The boot loader can be set to automatically boot Windows after x amount of seconds, so you don't need to worry about the family getting confused.

ethernet

If the sound of partitioning and boot loaders make you shudder, consider taking a look at Wubi (Windows Ubuntu Installer). It's not quite the same as a native install and has a few niggles but it'll let you install the OS as a program on XP and can be removed easily using Add/Remove Programs. This is not how it would be done were it installed natively.

Wubi is standard on the latest version of Ubuntu. Just open the CD and launch wubi.exe or whatever it's called. Just following the clear instructions. If you don't want to download, you can have the CD sent to you for free (takes a few weeks though).

An Fear Aniar

Take a look at the screens here

http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/installing

which is the GUI installation of Ubuntu.

It's quite easy, but do back up anything valuable just in case.

Also, the Ubuntu install CD allows you to run the operating system off the CD, without changing anything on your computer. It's a good idea to run it off the CD first, to check if there are any problems with hardware compatibility.

Wubi is a very good option too, of course.


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calex71

ethernet wrote: »

If the sound of partitioning and boot loaders make you shudder, consider taking a look at Wubi (Windows Ubuntu Installer). It's not quite the same as a native install and has a few niggles but it'll let you install the OS as a program on XP and can be removed easily using Add/Remove Programs. This is not how it would be done were it installed natively.

Wubi is standard on the latest version of Ubuntu. Just open the CD and launch wubi.exe or whatever it's called. Just following the clear instructions. If you don't want to download, you can have the CD sent to you for free (takes a few weeks though).

a big +1 for the wubi method, i have been trying to get ubuntu to tripple boot with xp and vista for ages and only an hour or so i discovered wubi in the time it took to drink my tea i was on the ubuntu desktop no drivers needed all hardware detected and working

turgon

Firstly, thanks for all the advise.

My journey towards Linux has been dogged by bad luck. When halfway through downloading the big 700mb Ubuntu file I shut the computer off by mistake. When I turned it on again Firefox automatically started downloading it again. But unfortunately it has been corrupted.

I ran the WUBI program then which automatically downloaded the whole thing again. However I decided to save the OS into my second hard drive. Then after selecting Ubuntu at startup its starting complaining about corrupted and damaged files - so it didn't work. I then tried to install it the conventional way using a boot CD I had created but the CD was corrupted from above.

I then went to uninstall Ubuntu from add/remove programs before trying again. Did it twice but its still there. Not overly worried though as the computer is 3 years old and Ive messed it up so much already,

So doing the WUBI thing again hopefully it will work out., I have also ordered the CD (for free) so if that doesnt work at all Ill give it another lash in two months when I get CD.

Ill post again should some progress be found!!

An Fear Aniar

When you get the Live CD, you can run Ubuntu off the CD drive for a little while, that way you will have foreknowledge of any possible difficulties.

.

ethernet

turgon wrote: »

Firstly, thanks for all the advise.

My journey towards Linux has been dogged by bad luck. When halfway through downloading the big 700mb Ubuntu file I shut the computer off by mistake. When I turned it on again Firefox automatically started downloading it again. But unfortunately it has been corrupted.

I ran the WUBI program then which automatically downloaded the whole thing again. However I decided to save the OS into my second hard drive. Then after selecting Ubuntu at startup its starting complaining about corrupted and damaged files - so it didn't work. I then tried to install it the conventional way using a boot CD I had created but the CD was corrupted from above.

I then went to uninstall Ubuntu from add/remove programs before trying again. Did it twice but its still there. Not overly worried though as the computer is 3 years old and Ive messed it up so much already,

So doing the WUBI thing again hopefully it will work out., I have also ordered the CD (for free) so if that doesnt work at all Ill give it another lash in two months when I get CD.

Ill post again should some progress be found!!

You unlucky sod. You'll be glad to know Firefox 3 allows you to resume downloads.

If you used the first version of Wubi from good-microsoft.com (or whatever the site's called), that would have downloaded it all again. Or maybe the version on the CD was buggy/looking for extra packages.

Add/Remove should just delete the image from <windows_root>:\ubuntu -- or whatever it's now called -- and remove the entry for Ubuntu from boot.ini. This could be done manually but you shouldn't have to.

When you say the CD doesn't work, how so? Bad disk? PC not booting from it? Might be your BIOS settings (boot priority).

Post back if you want a hand installing

turgon

Well I used the WUBI Installer the second time and it worked. I got rid of the second boot option manually through the boot.ini file.

So Ive loaded up Ububtu a few times, maybe 6. Once I got command line error messages, but restarted and it was grand. The other time it was crawling. You had to wait about one second for every letter you typed, dont know what happened. Restarted again and its was fine.

I havent got a chance to really try it yet though. Im having lots of trouble setting up an internet connection, the problem is my Netopia Cayman modem is connected via USB not ethernet (there is no ethernet card inside the machine). So even though I have the password and username I think Ubuntu wont register the presence of the modem. (Ill set up a seprate thread for this)

As a result of this Ive been very limited. I cant install any programs (I had intended to install Apache Server / PHP / MySql) and cant do some other basic things like play mp3 music files cause I need to download a codec.

Otherwise I could see myself not needing windows much any more. I dont play many computer games (for which I would need Windows or a fix) and the other Linux-compatible programs like Open Office seem very adequate.

Thanks for all the help in getting me to this position. After I set up an internet connection and start playing around Im sure Ill appreciate this OS even more. Cheers.

turgon

ethernet wrote: »

When you say the CD doesn't work, how so? Bad disk? PC not booting from it? Might be your BIOS settings (boot priority).

Post back if you want a hand installing

I think the CD I made was buggy, didnt work even after changing the bios settings. I have ordered a free copy, so if I will be using Ubuntu a lot I will hard install it - judging from some of the guides around It doesnt appear to be a mammoth task.

ethernet

Well done on the install. The native install isn't hard at all but for the odd person who is used to clicking Next all the time, it can yield unexpected results Don't know about your router. Mentioned in the other thread that the easiest (not cheapest) fix is to pick up a basic network card. There's probably a solution online.