Should I install Linux as a second operating system in my computer?

Question

I have 2 hard drives so I could install Ubuntu or Mint in one while keeping XP on the other.

What are the advantages of this operating system?
Can I have fun sharing my experience with others? Is there a community sharing emails, or a web page where messages can be exchanged?
Is there software to buy, or free software to download?
Can I test software, and report on it?
Are there games?

Answer 1

OK, in order:

1. No, you should have Linux as your primary operating system, and you shouldn't have XP at all. But let's start out easy, don't want to shock you. Try Wubi, if you have enough memory to run XP and Ubuntu. Probably an old machine, so you're better off trying a live distro (DVD, or flash drive), which will run just one OS at a time. Then install in a 20 GB partition, and use the other hard drive just for data. See Youtube tutorials on dual-booting. BACK UP ALL YOUR STUFF FIRST.



2. See the first link below. Too long to list here!



3. There's a lot of forums for each distro, go to the n00b section for the elementary stuff. Also, lots of youtube tutorials on how to do stuff. I like NixiePixel, for reasons which will become obvious if you tune in.



4. Buy??! Pffft. 60,000 packages, almost all free and easy to install. Most distros come with what you need to get to work, right out of the box.



5. Yeah, testing betas and reporting bugs is something you can to to help out.



6. Lots of free cheezy games, and maybe you've heard of Steam?

Answer 2

Yes you can that is called dual boot.

What are the advantages of this operating system?

It is free, stable, and very customizable. You are very unlikely to get virus or malware.



Can I have fun sharing my experience with others? Is there a community sharing emails, or a web page where messages can be exchanged?

There are forums where you can discuss topics/ ideas and help other with linux problems.



Is there software to buy, or free software to download?

Yes there is free software that you can download at the website of the linux distro.



Can I test software, and report on it?

You can test the software on your computer before you installit. If you want to report on it you can send you ideas to a forum.



Are there games?

Yes linux has a lot of native games. Only some windows games work on linux and some not at all.



Read about Ubuntu on the first link. Take the tour and learn how to burn it to a cd and install it.

The other links are for a few linux games.

Answer 3

"What are the advantages of this operating system?"

Fast virus and malware free



"Can I have fun sharing my experience with others? Is there a community sharing emails, or a web page where messages can be exchanged?"

Linux distros are comunity made and supported, Each distro has a forum. Mint and ubuntu both have forums.

http://ubuntuforums.org/forum.php

http://forums.linuxmint.com/

Puppy Linux murga forum is good.

http://murga-linux.com/puppy/



"Is there software to buy, or free software to download?"

Most software is free to own and also free to adapt.

http://linuxappfinder.com/alternatives



"Can I test software, and report on it?"

Yes to the forums both distro and specific application forums or sourcforge site, Bug reports etc and you can adapt most code and programs.



Are there games?

Yes, some may take a bit of work depending on your distro

Mint and ubuntu have games in there software binary repositories

I use flight gear, simutrans and freeciv,



Softpedia is also a good place to look.

http://linux.softpedia.com/

for more specialized stuff

http://webscripts.softpedia.com/



Linux is not windows.

I view the difference as going from A to B in a car compared to a motorbike.



Both get you to B but the journey uses different techniques and feels different.



So the answer is that Linux cannot be compared to windows as its different in lots of ways. If Linux was the same then linux would catch virus and malware.

Answer 4

I'll answer the first part and that is the fact putting Windows on Drive C; and Linux on drive D; is actually good because Linux is not messing with the Windows Hard drive Partitions, making it easier to get back to windows with a lot less effort than it would be if you install it on the same hard drive.



Advantage of Linux, Runs 24/7, 365 days a year and doesn't crash unless the user does some thing absolutely dumb and stupid to cause it to crash.



There are all kind of Linux Forums you can use. There are even Chat rooms for people who use Linux You are already communication with Linux User right here in Yahoo Questions and Answers. Some of us have our messenger and email turned on in our Q&A profile. We can only communicate with others that have their email turned on. In Q&A you have it set not to show your email address.



The Software Center and Synaptic are the software managements programs that allow you to install software for the distribution you are using and does this automatically.



I don't know about the testing software part of the question.



Linux has all kinds of games you can install. Some Commercial Games will work with Linux and others you would have to run in Virtual Box or VMware. It's not really a gaming system. Streaming in Linux is still in it's infant stages, but they continue to work on that and fix what ever issues come up, this is still one that would be better off running with Virtual Box or VMware. Or simple decide Windows is your Gaming Operating System. The follow in the ways I use Linux.



1. Install Linux as Only Operating System

2. Install Linux Dual Boot on a single hard drive

3. Install Linux on a second hard drive

4. Run Linux from a LiveCD

5. Run Linux from a Flash Drive

6. Run Linux from an external Hard Drive only. (requires disconnecting internal hard dives to prevent Grub Boot Loader from being put on the internal hard drives. Boot if from the boot menu at boot time.

Answer 5

I have two hard drives in my computer and 4 operating systems. On C: I have XP Home and Mint 10 64bit, whilst on D: I have XP Pro 64 bit and Mint 13 64 bit.



It's possible to have XP and Linux on the same hard drive but XP (or any Windows must be installed first followed by Linux. When you go to install Linux let it do it automatically but select 'run along side Windows.



The major advantages of Linux over Windows is that Linux won't be attacked by viruses, it's faster than any Windows on the same machine and all the software and the OS itself, is free.

Answer 6

Yes- Linux is a great system. There is tones of free software for it, and user groups.

Right now the only advantage that Windows has over Linux is that few games are written for Linux.

The entire point to the open source movement is the idea software companies should provide tech support and most software should be freely distributed.

Answer 7

In a situation like this I generally recommend Linux Mint over Ubuntu. Ubuntu is a consumer OS built on free software. The free software in question is the cheapest knockoff of BSD UNIX, the OS on which modern networking and companies such as Google and Yahoo developed on. Ubuntu does have a wonderful community with mailing lists and so forth all over the place. Actually all of them do. But most distributions and especially Linux Mint can teach you a lot about how to take responsibility for what is on your computer -- which of course is always a good idea.

Answer 8

No WUBI wanted. No outside device needed at all. Almost *each* Linux distro will comprehend the existence of a windows distribution already in situation, and mechanically create a Boot select menu for using (utilizing a instrument referred to as GRUB). That way each and every boot which you can select, or set it to routinely run one or the other after just a few seconds. Are trying Mint or Xubuntu or Ubuntu. :-)

Answer 9

You can try Ubuntu without putting it on a different partition They have a installer called Wubi that allows you to run Ubuntu in windows. Once installed when you start your computer you will have the choice to boot Windows or Ubuntu. If you pick Ubuntu, you will be in a full working version of Ubuntu. When you decide to get rid of it all you have to do is boot into windows and remove it like you would any other windows program. Here's a link to Ubuntu page that has the windows installer.

http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop/windows-installer

Answer 10

Hello,

You can download VirtualBox for free here http://j.mp/YRYhke



VirtualBox is a free, open source solution for running other operating systems virtually on your PC.

It's surely the leader program of its type

Bye

Answer 11

Mostly games are only for windows and mac but not for linux or ubuntu. So you have to surf the internet for the games for linux. One thing is for sure that no virus can attack your pc with linux installed.:-)

Answer 12

The only advantage of linux is that it's free. All disadvantages can be found within 1 hr of using it. Believe it

Answer 13

Good luck installing an OS on another drive other than your primary a.k.a. C it can't be done.