NuBe Needs help stating to use Ubuntu

So I want to start using linux. I bought thes Book Called The Official unbutu Book.. It came with an ubuntu CD/DVD. Says it's a full copy of 6.06LTS, but I'm not sure.
So Here's my list of questions:
What DO I need to do to install ubuntu?
How DO I dual-boot?
Will I need to download anything?

All help that you can give will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance to all who reply and I look forward to reading your post

Phillip

 

sorry, didn't see the sticky of the linux guide.
Though if anyone wishes to help me through this post, It would be nice.

 

You have everything you need to get started. Actually, quite a bit more than most people start with. Probably, all you will need to do is put the CD into your optical drive and reboot the machine, and Ubuntu will boot from the CD and allow you to try the system out.

Dual-booting is very simple. If you decide to install Ubuntu to your harddrive, it will automatically detect any Windows installations you have and add them to what is called the GRUB menu. Basically, when you boot your computer, the GRUB menu will appear for a short while (you can configure the amount of time once things are installed,) and allow you to choose between Linux and Windows to boot from.

For downloads, you'll probably need to download a bunch of updates (since the 6.06 release has been out since June,) which Ubuntu will handle automatically through the update manager. You might need to download and install a newer version of your graphics driver depending on what card you're using.

One tip I would suggest is that if you have a Wi-Fi network connection, consider plugging in directly to the router via ethernet cable for the initial setup, because WiFi is one area of Linux where you'll probably need to install drivers and do a little bit of configuration.

 

i got some questions. how do you get wireless working, is there a way to fix the clock so it isnt military time, how do i download updates, how do i install programs, and how do i fix the resolution? it doesnt seem to find my video card. sorry if this seems like alot, but this is my first time using linux

 

For your graphics card drivers you can download an install script called "envy" off of this guy's page:

http://albertomilone.com/nvidia_scripts1.html

Make sure you read all of his installation instructions before proceeding.

Note: You may notice that the url references nvidia, but the newest version of his script includes drivers for both ATI and NVIDIA, as you will see when you reach the website.

 

I need to reformat my HD. Considering I have want is advertised as 80GB of space, what would be the optimum partition configuration for me to use to run both WinXP and ubuntu? Second, I assume that I should install windows first, Is this correct? Last when going through the partitioning/reformating process, what does it mean when ubuntu tells me to "Make sure to allocate space for a root partition ("/"), with a minimum size of 2GB and a swap partition of at least 256MB".
Other than that, I think I understand it enough to get started.

again thanks for the help.

Phillip

 

Yes you will want to install XP first. Ok in general you will want two partition, the first is the main partition which is were all of your data will be stored(stuff like documents, videos programs... the OS) So give this as much as you can but something like 10GB is a good place to start if you can spare it(the main partition will be formated using ext3 file format).

Then there is a swap partition. Think of swap as basically something that Linux will use as ram if it finds that your computer does not have enough. Typically I use anyware from 512MBs-1GB for the swap(this should be formatted as Linux-Swap in ubuntu) if you have less than 512MBs of ram you should have more.

 

OK here's my laptop's specs just to clear some things up
Core Duo 2.0ghz
80GB 7200rpm HD
1GB (512MB X2) RAM at 533MHz
ATI Radeon x1400
intergrated sound

Now,If I understand things correctly this is what I should do:
1) reformat HD
2) install WinXP
3) install ubuntu
3a) while installing partition the HD
My question is this: do I need a separted partion for each OS? and How many partitions total should I end up with and what size for each(ball park estimates are fine)?

 

mine was as followed:

FAT partition (for dell mediadirect)
win xp
gray spot (still not really sure about that)
1GB swap partition
linux

so with windows, you should have 3. i had a problem with mine partition process, so i had to make the linux partition first, and put it at the end of the unallocated space, then i made the swap at the beginning of the unallocated space. not sure if thats the right way, but thats the only way i could get it to work, and it install fine

i feel so stupid trying to figure linux out. haha. sigh, oh well, its a learning experience i guess.

 

It always happened that XP was already installed on my computer when I went to install Ubuntu(or any other distro for that matter) And yes you will need a partition for each OS.

It should look somthing like this with your 80GB HDD
69GB = what ever you use with XP (NTFS I think)
10GB = ext3 format
1GB = swap format

 

can you use more than 10GB i used 20GB, but i had to reinstall windows, so i gotta do it again

 

Here's a nice guide on how to set up partitions. I found the suggestions on this page to work well for me.

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

In fact the general web page is good to look at for some basic linux information:

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

 

That looks good, I Think I'll go with that setup. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow.

 

I second that.


The Ubuntu will let you config your partitions during install process. JUST MAKE SURE YOU SELECT TO MANUALLY SET PARTITONS. I THINK IT'S THE SECOND BOX TO CHECK.

After ithat it's very easy instructions.

Don't change the GRUB location, unless you know what you are doing. The install will end up crashing at the end. Then you will need to install again. PAIN IN THE ASS. Keep it as is ......(hd0)

 

thanks and keep the suggestions coming.

 

Sure you can use as much as you want. I just said 10GB because it is plenty if you are just using it for general productivity like office and some pictures. Of course if you are going to try video editing or serious photo editing then you will need more space.

Also if this is your first time using Ubuntu I would highly recommend (infact words cannot express how urgently I would recommend) that you download Automatix2. It will make your life so much easier, especially if you are not accustomed to using the command line. through Automatix2 you just have to click on what you want and download(options range from Opera to 3D modeling programs) Of course you get this after you have used the update manager (which is automatic) to bring your system up to date and have Internet working.

 

ah ok. thanks for the help. yea, i was just wondering about the 20GB cause i have a 100GB hard drive. now, i noticed that linux wont see, or open windows exe. i figured that would happen, but i saved a website on my flash, and it couldnt open it.

 

yeah......about the internet......my system seem to be tempramental when trying to access it, sometime it works, sometimes it doesn't. Will this be fixed when I install ubuntu? It works fine with WinXP.

 

Automatix2 can install WINE, a program that will enable you to run most windows software, just as if it were windows. It even sets up a nice little start menu-like thing for you.

 

Do you mean that it was temperamental in another Linux install? I think it depends on what wireless card you computer came with, you will probably have to find out which model your notebook has. Then find the Linux version of its driver. If that does not work you will have to install ndiswrapper via automatix2. ndiswrapper will essentially wrap the WinXP driver in a Linux skin for you.

 

No I mean when I was test driving it from the CD, the wired ethernet connection would either work or not work. I'll try the wireless driver suggestion once I get to installing ubuntu.

 

is there a way so i can set it up so windows boots first if no keys are hit? do i have to set that up during the installion, or can i do it after it is installed?

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=1768403#post1768403
and here is a good guide:
http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Ubuntu_Edgy





V you're welcome

 

thanks for the link

 

when a new version comes out, and you do an upgrade...will you lose your data? i just read they are already getting ready for 7.04. so if i installed this, and got everything up to date, will i have to reinstall software and docs?

 

Well there is a way to update your system without doing a new install however, when I did it something in the process broke my system. So the answer is yes but take it with a grain of salt and of course always backup your important files when you plan on doing a system wide change.

As far as apps I think between Automatix2 and the synaptic package manager it should be fairly simple to reinstall them.

P.S Right now I think all of the current Ubuntu editions (maybe not 6.10) comes with Firefox 1.5. If you ever plan on upgrading to Firefox 2.0 go ahead and install all of the plugins for FF1.5 (Mplayer Flash gava etc) using automatix. This way when you upgrade to FF2.0 you will not have to install the plugins manually.

 

I'll just set a couple things straight...

Ubuntu 6.10 comes with FF2.0. The main thing that will break your upgrade path is Automatix, as it uses non-official repositories, so the upgrade system can't handle these packages it wasn't designed to deal with.

Finally, there is NO NEED to lose your personal data. The beauty of Linux is that you can set up a totally separate partition that seamlessly integrates into your file tree. I have my /home directory (kinda like Windows' C:\"Documents and Settings" folder) on a totally separate partition from my application data. This way, you could even totally format your installation and your personal stuff will be totally intact. That said, there are loads of configuration files that are stored in your /home directory in hidden folders (they start with a period, ie. /home/ yourusername/ .gnome2) these should probably be deleted so that you don't get configuration errors with the new versions of software.

Further, if you want to share files between Linux and Windows, it's probably a good idea to create separate partition altogether in FAT32 or NTFS so that Windows can access it and then you just set it up as a directory in Linux, such as /media/windows or something. When you get that far, go ahead and ask.

 

ok thanks. lets hope i can get this linux stuff down