 What Should I Know Before Switching From Xp To Ubuntu?, Thinking hard to make a switch |
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 Mar 18 2008, 12:38 AM
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Member  Group: Members Posts: 23 Joined: 12-March 08 Member No.: 195,846  |
While i am dealing with my current XP-virus-infected-problem I looked real hard at switching to a Mac. Problem is, it is just too expensive for a broke college student like me. So someone recommended Ubuntu. I did some reading up, but frankly, I am not computer wiz. I am a regular PC user with no special needs for special softwares so far. I mostly use my comp for the internet. What do you think? |
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Mar 18 2008, 09:18 AM
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 Hail Groovicus! Group: Site Admin Posts: 5,670 Joined: 5-June 04 From: Vermillion, SD Member No.: 689 |
I think Ubuntu would be a good choice; it installs easily, and there is a huge support community. If you like, you can download a live-cd version, burn it to a disk, and give it a try before committing to installing it.
http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/download How to burn it to a cd: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BurningIsoHowto -------------------- |
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Mar 18 2008, 11:42 AM
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Member Group: Members Posts: 23 Joined: 12-March 08 Member No.: 195,846 |
Just realized that my pc is 5 years old. I think there would be an issue with the drivers. Hmm...need to think this over. Must I reformat my pc to install Ubuntu?
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Mar 18 2008, 01:01 PM
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Hail Groovicus! Group: Site Admin Posts: 5,670 Joined: 5-June 04 From: Vermillion, SD Member No.: 689 |
If you install linux, it is going to reformat your system so that it uses a file structure compatible with linux.
Generally the only time there are issues with linux drivers is when the hardware is too new, not the opposite. -------------------- |
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Mar 18 2008, 06:23 PM
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 Bleepin' Night Watchman Group: BC Advisor Posts: 1,762 Joined: 5-December 05 From: The City of Saint Francis, by the western sea Member No.: 43,307 |
Also, the Ubuntu installer can automagically repartition your hard drive so that Windows and all your data remain intact alongside Linux. At boot time, you'll be given an option as to which OS to install.
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Mar 25 2008, 05:06 PM
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#6
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New Member Group: Members Posts: 3 Joined: 23-March 08 Member No.: 198,360 |
I use ubuntu and it is great but I highly recommend a dual boot. You can do just about anything on ubuntu but there are still a few programs that are windows only that you may need at some point such as photoshop (although there is gimp, it's not the same). This will let you do reap the benefits of both xp and ubuntu. Try running ubuntu off of a live disc first so you can see how you like it and even try a few other distros of linux, maybe you'll like something else better. Then when you're ready, install. Just remember when running off a live disc it won't be quite as fast as having it installed on the computer.
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Mar 26 2008, 09:15 AM
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#7
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New Member Group: Members Posts: 10 Joined: 2-March 08 Member No.: 193,831 |
QUOTE(goldwave84 @ Mar 18 2008, 12:42 PM)  Just realized that my pc is 5 years old. I think there would be an issue with the drivers. Hmm...need to think this over. Must I reformat my pc to install Ubuntu? You can set up a dual-boot if you're concerned about losing data or functionality. Typically, Linux runs better on older hardware because it takes up less RAM and HD space; kernel drivers for older hardware are usually easy to find, so you should be OK there. Drivers are an issue on bleeding-edge new hardware because the community hasn't had a chance to reverse-engineer the drivers, but older systems like yours don't have that problem. |
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Apr 28 2008, 10:08 PM
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#8
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Member Group: Members Posts: 34 Joined: 6-December 05 From: People's Republic of Austin (Tx) Member No.: 43,499 |
I just installed Ubuntu at home after years of supporting Microsoft OSs. I bought an enormous blank drive and decided to make this an entirely open-source box.
I was a fan of Windows only because I didn't know anything else, and after just 2 days of playing around with Ubuntu, I'm hooked. The basic tools are better, it is much more customizable than any Windows OS I have ever seen, and the open source support community has solutions for just about anything, you just have to look. Whereas Linux boxes don't get infections like Windows, it's just because there are not much malware out there that is written for that platform. yet, I am sure that the same -ahem- @programmers@ will also learn to write malware for the various versions of Linux. Starting with a blank drive, I burned the image onto the disk & failed to boot. I looked at it again, and found that I had to have the install app on the same level as the root.  I just wasn't paying attention when I burned the first disk, but at least now I have a backup!  Once it booted, I had to wait for hours to partition, format, and install- a 400 gig drive takes a while! Now it's just a matter of taking the time to learn it, play with the settings & find or make apps that will do the things I want it to do. I'll never go back to Windows! |
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Apr 28 2008, 10:25 PM
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 Bleeping Hacker Group: BC Advisor Posts: 1,721 Joined: 14-April 04 From: Texas Member No.: 151 |
Nice to have you among the converted.
Trouble with malware on Linux is you can only harm your own files and not the important system files. Screw that up and just create a new user and continue on. Linux is open source so thousands of eyes look it over, improve it and keep it secure. It's totally worth the learning curve. -------------------- |
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