This is topic Help me with downloading Linux....what should I do? in forum Books, Films, Food and Culture at Hatrack River Forum.


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Posted by steven (Member # 8099) on :
 
My friend's computer is slow and old, but she doesn't want to buy a newer one (lack of money issues). Therefore, I am going to install Linux on that machine, to counteract its lack of speed. This will be my first time. What should I do? I need your help, o geeky ones! I'm a Linux virgin.

My machine is very fast. Should I burn Linux to a CD, and then install it on her computer that way? Would that be easier than browsing to and downloading it on her ancient machine?

All she needs is basic word processing and web browsing. Where/what should I download?

Help!
 

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Posted by Mucus (Member # 9735) on :
 
Dance the Linux summoning dance.
 

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Posted by xtownaga (Member # 7187) on :
 
While I'm not a big linux person and may be out of date on this, last time i looked into it Ubuntu was the distribution of choice for casual/non technie users. You can download a disk image here:
http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/download
You then burn that image, boot her computer using the freshly made disk, and follow whatever installation instructions they provide. It should come with a copy of firefox (which may be a little out of date but should be current as of whenever the disk image was made) and a copy of Open Office, which should be fine for basic word processing.
 

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Posted by steven (Member # 8099) on :
 
Thank you.
 

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Posted by scifibum (Member # 7625) on :
 
Linux Mint is also pretty slick and easy to use, and comes in soothing green tones.
 

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Posted by steven (Member # 8099) on :
 
I just burned Ubuntu. I'm about to install it later today. I'm so excited. It's really sad, but I'm excited.
 

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Posted by lem (Member # 6914) on :
 
I know you already got started, but I wanted to also recommend Mint. It is basically Ubuntu with all the media codecs that are proprietary. This lets you immediately see Youtube or other media files without having to do any configuration or additional downloads.

EDIT: with many Linux distributions you can actually use the CD as a live image that lets you test drive it. You then begin the install by clicking a install button on the desktop. They do this so you can try out your hardware before you install the OS.

Also, if her computer is really old, you can try Xubuntu. It is Ubuntu with different desktop environment that is designed for older systems.
 

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Posted by steven (Member # 8099) on :
 
Thanks, lem. I installed Ubuntu. It works great, but I can't get it to recognize her Netgear adapter. Is there a good forum to ask about this? I asked on linux.com network forum, but that forum looks like it doesn't get many posts. Do you have any thoughts? Thanks.
 

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Posted by lem (Member # 6914) on :
 
I would try the Ubuntu Forums. They have a pretty robust community. What make and model is your wireless card? Is it USB or internal?
 

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Posted by steven (Member # 8099) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by lem:
I would try the Ubuntu Forums. They have a pretty robust community. What make and model is your wireless card? Is it USB or internal?

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