Dual-boot Windows and Linux, step 1: Get Ubuntu

This is the year I kiss Windows good-bye. Well, maybe not entirely, but the writing is on the wall for Microsoft's flagship operating system, and all other desktop bloatware: The future of PC software is open source. (I'll add that the future of PC applications is on the Web, which I'll cover once we've got Ubuntu in place.)

Being the belts-and-suspenders type, I'll make the conversion from proprietary to open in baby steps, the first of which is to get a copy of Ubuntu 7.1 (a.k.a. Gutsy Gibbon), the version of Linux from Canonical Ltd. that has a reputation for being complete, well supported, and easy to use. I know the OS only by reputation, however. Wikipedia provides a comprehensive comparison of Linux versions.

There are three ways to get an Ubuntu installation CD: Download the distro and burn it to a CD, buy a copy at Amazon ($13 plus shipping), or request a free CD by mail (allow six to 10 weeks for delivery).

If you go the download route, be patient: The program is 700MB, so even over a broadband link it will take some time to complete. The download is an ISO file required to make an installation CD. Look for an option in your CD-burning application called "Burn from Disk Image" or something similar.

If you use Windows XP, you may need to download Alex Feinman's ISO Recorder utility. The program is free, but the author requests donations. Insert a blank CD in the drive. ISO Recorder should open the CD Recording wizard automatically when the download completes, but if it doesn't, right-click the ISO file you just downloaded and choose Copy Image to CD. Click Next, and complete the recording.

With your Ubuntu installation CD in hand, you're ready to take the OS for a test drive.

Tomorrow: Run Ubuntu from the CD, or create a drive partition for dual-booting the OS with Windows.

[peppych]

Hi,

Just wanted to say that there is a other way to get an Ubuntu CD. You can ask one directly to your local team, which will even provide some support if you ask kindly ;)

The LoCoTeam list can be found on: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/LoCoTeamList

Peppy

[starflyer79]

if your going on reputation alone you could just buy a Mac. That way you can run Leopard, Vista or Ubuntu.

[mattflaschen]

You must have missed the part where he said, "The future of PC software is open source." Mac is a largely proprietary OS, just like Windows, notwithstanding the BSD core.

[spiritraveller]

Dennis, there is no such thing as Ubuntu 7.1.

In the version numbering scheme for Ubuntu, the first number indicates the year of release, and the number after the decimal indicates the month.

Thus, Gutsy Gibbon is version "7.10" because it was released last October. Feisty Fawn is version "7.04" because it was released last April, and so on.

[doreilly]

Thanks for the clarification.

Dennis

[rennard]

Save yourself the bother, and just get a Mac. You will eventually, so just cut to the chase, get a head start, etc, and do it now.

Plus, you can always run Ubuntu on it at and see how much better off you are with OS X.

[emuelle1]

Ubuntu is a fine effort, and some people do very well using only Linux, but my own attempt to switch off of Windows to Ubuntu Linux only made me appreciate Windows and Mac OS X more.

I don't agree with your statement that "the future of software is open source". Open source certainly has a place in the future of software, but I honestly don't see a time when proprietary software will become completely obsolete. There is also a huge difference between software and operating systems.

[crmccreary]

I use Windows XP, OS X, and various linux distros (but mostly Ubuntu) every day, all day. The setup that I like the most is Ubuntu 7.10 (aka Gutsy Gibbon) with a virtualized Windows XP running under VMWare Server. Works for me.

[RMegna]

Jeez, seems like a lot of work to me. What part of this is supposed to be simple? Why don't you just get a Mac? That way you can not only save us all the tiresome story of your struggles with Ubuntu, but you can still run Windows AND Linux if you want. And, oh yeah, you can also use online applications with the fastest browser on any platform, Safari 3.

It never ceases to amaze me how much trouble supposedly smart people go through to avoid using a Mac.

[sgtrock111]

"It never ceases to amaze me how much trouble supposedly smart people go through to avoid paying for a new PC just so they can run OS/X."

Fixed that for you. :)

[fireashes]

I used wine... i easily installed ubuntu 7.04 and upgraded to 7.10
Its easy for the popole who want to try ubuntu and know how it works... you dont need to know anything to install it. You dont need to partition the hard drive...

easy... done...

[EdHolston]

I'm amazed at the number of people who are suggesting he get a mac instead of trying out Linux. Surely you guys, of all people, see the flaw in the "do what I'm doing because it's far better" mentality. The fact that countless Windows users have said similar things to guys a lot like yourselves is a large part of the reason why so many people never will try out OS X.

By all means recommend the things you like to use, but don't discourage people from trying out new things based solely on the fact that you enjoyed something else, especially if you haven't tried out the product in question. Doing so does little more than encourage people to stick with what they know, and whilst there's nothing wrong with that, it seems a shame that people would discourage others from trying something new, whatever that something might be.

Finally, to the author: Best of luck.

[forebees]

One of the things that Ed didn't expand upon is that trying out Gnu/Linux distros, with few exceptions, is free, as in free beer. Unless I missed the 'free OSX here' sticker somewhere, I'd say that 'trying OSX' is really not the same.

Additionally, unless I missed something here, can I install this free OSX on my HP and Compaq laptops, my two home desktops, or my relatives and friends laptops and desktops (on which I've installed various Gnu/Linux distros? Can I not just install it on any or as many machines I want to? Am I mistaken in that to actually install this OSX operating system, I have to buy a new machine from Apple, or second-hand machine from somewhere - I thought it 'just worked' ;)

[bradley s]

No " Free OS X " ?

Really? http://wiki.osx86project.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

[bradley s]

No "Free OS X" ?

Really? http://wiki.osx86project.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page