linux on PC

02-13-2006

Any of comp.os.linux.misc,comp.os.linux.advocacy, comp.os.linux.answers, comp.os.linux.misc, comp.os.linux.setup might be a good starting point. You might also check in distribution watch. You don't say how your machine is configured or what your specific requirements are, so I need to make some buttumptions.

If I wanted windoze and Linux on the same machine, I would install windoze first1, because m$ has a habit of sabotaging other operating systems during the install process. I'd install windoze as the only thing on a primary parbreastion and create a logical drive in an extended logical parbreastion for my windoze data.

Now for Linux. I'd create separate logical drives forboot, root andhome; some would prefer consolidating andboot, while others would also split off, e.g.,tmp,var. Note that if you have adequate disk save then you can install multiple versions of Linux on the same machine and decide at boot time2 which you want to run. The install utility has the ability to save a copy of the existing master boot record (MBR), which you may need for getting into windoze. As part of installing Linux you will configure a boot loader, e.g., grub, lilo, which includes a menu of operating systems; in your case that should include one version of windoze and one or two versions of Linux.

You boot the machine from the hard drive, the boot loader presents you with a menu with a default system selected and you either select a system or allow it to time out and automatically boot the default. There is also provision for changing system parameters from the boot menu, but that's probably more than you need right now.

That depends on how much you install. I've been running 2-4 GiB for root, but I tend to select a lot of packages that you probably don't want and may have never heard of. A stripped down system would be drastically smaller.

If you have the space I'd suggest installing KDE, GNOME and a couple of the lightweight desktops and playing around with each until you have a feel for which is the most comfortable for you.

If you're confortable with burning your own CD-ROM's, SuSE and many others proved ISO images that you can download. If you're not comfortable with that, or if you want dead tree documentation, several distributions are available from retail outlets packaged as books with CD or as CD set with book.

1 Which you have already done.

2 I'm buttuming that you aren't running any sort of virtual machine software.

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