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    Linux-XP

    Discussion in 'Linux Compatibility and Software' started by Colton, Nov 8, 2008.

  1. Colton

    Colton Also Proudly American

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    Hi everyone, I was wondering if I installed Linux onto my laptop and I didn't like it for some reason, would I be able to go back to XP? Also, would I be able to partition my hard-drive so that I could run both XP and Linux? Thanks! :)
     
    Colton, Nov 8, 2008
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  2. Charr

    Charr Notebook Deity

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    You can partition your hard drive so that you don't have to remove Windows. Gparted is a great utility to do that. You can also install Ubuntu in Windows using Wubi without the need to partition.
     
    Charr, Nov 8, 2008
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  3. Colton

    Colton Also Proudly American

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    Ok, Thanks Charr! Do you know of a guide or like to using Wubi?
     
    Colton, Nov 9, 2008
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  4. zephyrus17

    zephyrus17 Notebook Deity

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    Just pop in the Ubuntu cd when you're in Windows, and just follow the instructions. It's very simple. But be generous with the space you give your Ubuntu 'section'. Because it's hard to expand it if you want more.

    Alternatively, download gparted, and burn it onto a cd, then shrink your windows partition, and install Ubuntu on the freed space. If you want to just have a look-see, then boot into the LiveCD mode, no changes will be made to your XP OS. It'll let you have a feeling of Ubuntu.
     
    zephyrus17, Nov 9, 2008
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  5. Colton

    Colton Also Proudly American

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    Great info, zephyrus17. I did exactly like you said with the LiveCD mode and worked great! Also, do you know what the best distro of Linux I should get for the Dell C320 as in my sig?
     
    Colton, Nov 9, 2008
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  6. Telkwa

    Telkwa Notebook Consultant

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    128 MB RAM is your biggest problem. You won't be able to install using the LiveCD - it needs more RAM than that to run properly.
    You could install using the alternate install CD. It's not really any harder than the LiveCD, but it's strictly an installer. You can't "test drive" the OS like with a LiveCD.
    Also, you might want to try Xubuntu, which is very similar to Ubuntu as far as how you use the repositories and such. But Xubuntu uses xfce as its GUI, which is a simpler, more lightweight desktop environment than Gnome or KDE.

    Xubuntu isn't quite as convenient as the others, but that's a small price to pay for decent performance on slower PC's. Some folks with perfectly capable PC's use Xubuntu by choice because it's snappier.
     
    Telkwa, Nov 9, 2008
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  7. zephyrus17

    zephyrus17 Notebook Deity

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    Aye. Since you only have 128Mb of RAM, your only options are the small distros like Xubuntu. I wouldn't recommend Arch or Gentoo, because even though it's very RAM-friendly, but not easy for beginners to set up.

    Alternatively, you could just buy more RAM. It's pretty cheap nowadays for a 1Gb RAM card.
     
    zephyrus17, Nov 9, 2008
    #7