New To Linux, Would Like to Install!

Alright so I thought I would start off listing my computer specs:

Alienware M14x R1:

Summary
Operating System
MS Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit SP1
CPU
Intel Core i7 @ 2.00GHz 55 °C
Sandy Bridge 32nm Technology
RAM
4.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 797MHz (11-11-11-28)
Motherboard
Alienware M14xR1 (CPU1)
Graphics
Generic PnP Monitor (1600x900@40Hz)
(Illegal Vendor ID)

Hard Drives
125GB M4-CT128M4SSD2 (SATA-SSD)
488GB SAMSUNG SAMSUNG HM500JJ (SATA) 37 °C
Optical Drives
No optical disk drives detected
Audio
Realtek High Definition Audio

Also: Nvidia GeForce GT 555M Driver 301.42

Alright, so I am thinking of running Ubuntu Linux as I am thinking about making some custom ROMs for Android and need Linux, also just to have Linux and see what it is about!

I guess my real question is...would it be better to run the Windows Installer version 12.04 LTS or should I run Ubuntu Desktop and run it alongside windows as sort of a "Dual Boot" option when I start the computer?

Any other suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

It'll do fine with linux.

I'm not sure what windows installer is, I expect it is just an easy way to get a dualboot windows/ubuntu setup without having to create ones own boot media. You might have some issues with graphics if it is of the switchable kind. I don't think linux and switchable graphics plays very nice, but you can usually run from the sandybridge IGP. It might also be possible to just run from the other graphics.

I take it you're not looking to completely replace windows. You might want to go down the virtual machine (I recommend Oracle VirtualBox) route if you're only interested in having a bit of a fiddle and playing with some android ROMS. That can be less compatible, but I've never experienced much issues myself personally. If you end up using linux frequently or like it, then you can always go ahead and create a dualboot later.

If you're running off battery (and not always in the wall), then you might want to know about a kernel command line parameter

Code:

i915.i915_enable_rc6=1

- this enables better power management (and supposedly performance from the IGP) which isn't on by default due to the fact that some users had issues with it (kernel panics and the sorts).

Finally, I would wholeheartedly recommend Fedora over Ubuntu, but I am a user with a moderate prior experience using unix based systems. I cannot really comment on how suitable one distribution is over another to users completely new. The situation is likely to be that you'll be doing a lot of googling whichever distribution you pick. My suggestion of fedora is purely my preference, mostly due to the nasty (imo) user interface that ubuntu ships with.

Hope you've found that helpful, let me know if you'd like answers to some more specific questions.

 

OP I am ready to make the leap also to Ubuntu, Once you download 12.04 and burn the CD you can run it after booting from CD. It will load to RAM and give you an idea of what devices work and what does not. I am going to check out Fedora in the same manner; thanks to yaxattax's suggestion. I am leaning toward Ubuntu mostly because it seems very popular Most Popular Linux Distributions of 2011 - Choosing a Popular Distro: Debian, openSUSE or Fedora? and I would assume there would more support available for it.
Thanks Yaxattax VVVVVVVVV

 

I get the impression that Linux Mint is more stable and newcomer friendly. But I've only ever heard about it, never used. Apart from the UI in ubuntu, my other main gripe is the packaging system - "apt".

In theory one types

Code:

sudo apt-get package-name

and that is the end of the story. Often though, a program reports a missing component or you know a rough name but not the exact name. I'm not an experienced user of apt, but I've found that it does not have a built in package searching mechanism (that I am aware of; this is not true of the GUI). Fedora, and other distros which use "yum" are better in this respect. One can run

Code:

yum search item

or

Code:

yum provides filename(e.g missing library)

and get packagenames which provide these files or descriptions and then install. Basically, everytime I've been without a package while using ubuntu, I've had no place to go to other than google, especially as I dislike using the UI.

Basically, a rant about the package system (which might not matter to new users), and possibly try Linux Mint too.

 

Another option (the way I’m running more OS’s)

Use free VMware player 4.03. Download it, and install. Then
download your Linux OS or any OS (beta also) you want to experiment with.
Start VM player and it will find the ISO and install. No need for CD, DVD
or flash drive. If you take any experiment to extreme levels, failure or
OS corruption, remember it’s virtual. Your main OS (WIN 7) is protected.

 

I have read about the Virtual Machine option, but I don't want to do the option where you just put the CD in and run it off the CD as I replaced my optical drive with my SSD and HD and don't want to carry my portable optical drive around. As far as battery goes, I am basically ALWAYS plugged in as the M14x was basically designed to run plugged in. I would like to go with the Dual Boot option or possibly use VirtualBox...something that can use my nvidia card is nice too.

Here is a video from PC Mag that seems like a good idea to run it:
How to Easily Install Ubuntu Linux on Any PC | PCWorld

 

I run Ubuntu alongside Windows 7 with no issues and it was very easy to install. Here is the link with the download link and instructions.

I know you said you don't have an optical drive, but you can use a USB stick to do the same thing. That link has instructions for that as well.

Linux has traditionally had issues with Nvidia switchable graphics but the Bumblebee Project has made drivers that may help out.

 

Thanks! Installing right now. I will run that Bumblebee Project as well

 

Fedora Live CD's (and I expect Ubuntu too) can be run from a pen drive. In the virtual machine case you don't even need to do that, just download the disk image tell the virtual machine that the mounted CD is the disk image. Simple as that

 

apt does have a search command. You should've googled on how apt works or man apt .

I wouldn't deal with CDs. Just make Ubuntu into a liveUSB.

 

I've been dual booting on multiple machines for the last decade. It beats the the windows installer (I assume you mean Wubi for Ubuntu) which can be problematic.

I recommend Ubuntu for two reasons. First, you can easily address certain issues and needs by adding ppas to the package manager to get software that isn't otherwise available. Second, there is an amazingly large community providing a vast amount of information on Ubuntu that will help you get started and address issues. As you learn Ubuntu you will soon learn the ropes to where you can branch out and demo other distros with some confidence.

Mint is basically Ubuntu except that it is green, comes with a different desktop and has some codecs installed. The downside is that it tends to hijack your browser's search function with adsense which I personally can't stand.

Really, it is helpful to think of linux as a modular system where you match a base install with a desktop environment that suits your needs/hardware.

For example, you can install Ubuntu and then add or remove desktop systems (Unity, Gnome Shell, XFCE, KDE, Openbox, LXDE, Fluxbox, Icewm, E17, etc) as you see fit. You can even install multiple desktops and then session into whatever suits you. The cool thing is that you can scale your install to work efficiently with your hardware and customize your desktop to fit your workflow.

An easy way to begin is by installing Lubuntu which features the lightweight LXDE desktop and then install and demo the other desktop enviroments until you find one that you like.

 

Great Explanation V1k1ng1001 ^^^
+1 REP for that and the info in the PM. I have my windows partition imaged to an external hard drive. From what I gather all I have to do now is create partitions for Windows, Linux and a Linux Swap file. Then clean install windows, then Linux for dual booting. I will give this a try with Gpart from the 12.04 live CD.

 

Thanks much to all thread contributors- Ubuntu 12.04 ROCKS - my Dell D610 runs it well. Only issue was getting boradcom wireless to work, but after some searching I was able to get it working.
When I run update manager there is a firmware update for my B43 (see attached). I am hesitant to install it since I am having no connection issues. Should I just uncheck it and do distribution updates only? Important, Recommended, Pre-Release and unsupported ;should I check all of these on?
Thank you in advance

 

If it took some fiddling to get it working, I might leave well enough alone. I used to have one of those and it was a pain in the .

One of the problems is that the card tends to get shut off even if you have everything installed correctly. I remember having to do some esoteric editing of config files to make sure that ubuntu flipped it on at boot up.

Of course the best long-term solution is to dump the broadcom card and buy an intel card for $10-$30. A solid Intel card will outperform the broadcom in just about every possible context.

 

Don't worry about firmware updates, if you have no problems there is no need, and on the flip side, they are only stored locally in /lib/firmware and loaded with the driver module, not flashed to any kind of ROM.

 

What is better to install for playing flash content; trying to run speed test here http://www.dslreports.com/speedtest?flash=1
GNash or Adobe. I am using the version of firefox that comes with 12.04. I guess I will be plagued with minor issues like this since I was not connected to the internet when I did the base install from CD.
Thanks so much Allurgroceries and v1k1ng1001

 

gnash is ok for some things, but you probably want the adobe version in the flashplugin-nonfree package

 

Also keep in mind that Adobe is dropping support for flash in Linux. So word is that Google will maintain it but only for Chrome.

Also I just learned that the ghostery add on for firefox will allow you to work around the adsesnse crap that hijacks your searches in Linux Mint. Also you can avoid it by using Chrome instead of Chromium.