Thinking of switching from XP to Linux...

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Riso-chan

The Blue Girl
Jan 17, 2005
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My main reason for this is viruses and a need to protect the work I do on my pc. I used it a bit in college, but need some advice. Is it as simple to use as windows? My only only concerns really are with certain programs working on it, such as Adobe Photoshop 6, MSword (or similar program) and digital camera software. Can anybody share their experiences with it if you have it, and give advice where ever needed?

I've just had alot of problems with my pc lately, and I'm tired of having to worry about all my files being corrupted. I don't want to have to be stuck in a consantly updating and outdating cycle with windows anymore, it just seems so unreasonable now, especially with the costs of updating or buying an entirely new OS. Give me your thoughts~Angela
 

slipknottin

the original legend
Jan 13, 2002
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Im thinking of doing the same, a dual boot system. Windows for games and the few programs i cant get for linux. But Linux for all the daily stuff, web browsing, music, etc.
 

IceH2O

Bazinga
Nov 26, 2005
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What type Linux are you planning to use. There are many different variations of it out there.

Linux is not as easy to use as Windows. If you're a wiz on the computer Linux isn't much of a problem. As long as you know code and root systems you should have no problems. I just find it hard to install programs on it because of the root factors. It does have a lot of tools you won't find on Windows.

As for viruses its just a matter of time till linux gets hit. the more popular it becomes the more of a target it will be. It'll probably be later than sooner so its a quick fix for now but it will come. I've actually already seen 1 virus made especially for Linux type OS.

Linux is more for building programs and the such. I'm not computer literate enough to use it though I do dabble with it from time to time.
 

dougall

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Mar 29, 2005
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I'll say good luck. you'll probably need it. (reassuring huh?)

Not that Linux is overly difficult, it's just different enough that things do not seem overly intuitive.

You will find that the programs that you want to use will not work natively under Linux, it may be possible to get them to run using something like WINE or Crossover Office, but nothing is guaranteed at all, let alone 100%.

There is equivalent software, OpenOffice.org (Don't blame me for the name) for MS Office, Gimp for Photoshop and plenty of others, for the most part you'll be able to do what you need to don, but won't have access to every single feature you want.



The biggest obstacle you'll have to overcome though, would be hardware support, for the most part it should be OK.. you might run into issues with thing such as graphics tablets, printers, modems, wireless networking, laptop support whatever.


To get your feet wet, you can download what's called a Live CD, where the actual version of linux will run from the CD, you won't need to affect windows, won't need to install anything and you should be able to see how you like it.. remember that because it's running off CD, it will be slower, if you install it, it will be comparable to running windows XP on the same machine.

2 such Live CDs which are the most popular would be

Knoppix or Ubuntu It is also possible to install either of these, but if you decide to install the system you'll have other options available to you. Both of these CDs can be download, Ubuntu will ship you a Linux CD free of charge.


But in all honesty, if you're looking for ways to get away from viruses etc. It would be a better option (IMHO) to look at the way you use windows and perhaps make changes there.. you won't have to relearn what you currently know.

You could probably have a large positive effect by Making sure you have a virus scanner running in the background, run frequent spyware scans on your system, use firefox not internet explorer for your web browser and create a non-administrator account that you use for normal day-to-day use. If you're having problems with corrupt files, make sure you have good backups of files outside of your PC (removable hard drive, CDs, etc.)


I don't want to put you off, just make sure you want to switch for the right reasons... switching will take time + effort.. but don't hesitate to ask..
 
Nov 15, 2004
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slipknottin said:
Im thinking of doing the same, a dual boot system. Windows for games and the few programs i cant get for linux. But Linux for all the daily stuff, web browsing, music, etc.

Well, that is tricky to get DB those OS' under one HD, but if you use two HD's then it's rather simple. I like to jump back and forth between BeatrIX and XP Pro. BeatrIX has a good setup CD so you can boot from CD and run the whole OS from the CD, so you don't lose anything or risk anything. That's how I first started and now I'm almost wanting to make the full switch....but it's not practical.
 

IceH2O

Bazinga
Nov 26, 2005
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dougall said:
Ubuntu will ship you a Linux CD free of charge.
They will actually send you 2 CDs. One is an install disc and the other is a bootable disc. The bootable disk you just stick in when you 1st turn the computer on so it boots up before Windows does.

I've tried Knoppix and Ubuntu, they both have their qualities.
 

slipknottin

the original legend
Jan 13, 2002
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sublime1184 said:
Well, that is tricky to get DB those OS' under one HD, but if you use two HD's then it's rather simple.

I do have two HDs, dual 250 gigs.
 

dougall

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Mar 29, 2005
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sublime1184 said:
Well, that is tricky to get DB those OS' under one HD
Only if you're not very good ;)


Seriously, it's only difficult if you need to resize a windows partition, but backup, defrag, and resize the partition and let Linux have the end of the disk.. you should be fine.


But back more on topic. Virtually all versions of linux are or can be the same for day to day usage as an operating system, the same software is/can be included. The differences are down to hardware detection, OS installation and the method of installing/updating software once the system's running.
 

Riso-chan

The Blue Girl
Jan 17, 2005
322
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Florida, USA
dougall said:
...You could probably have a large positive effect by Making sure you have a virus scanner running in the background, run frequent spyware scans on your system, use firefox not internet explorer for your web browser and create a non-administrator account that you use for normal day-to-day use. If you're having problems with corrupt files, make sure you have good backups of files outside of your PC (removable hard drive, CDs, etc.)
..
I think you're right, I may just do that. I had a friend come over today to take a look at it for me, and it's more than likely because my version of xp is a bootleg. Thus, this explains why the system files only work for short periods, since he ran into the same problem. I originally had ME on my system, so updating to XP should be less expensive. Also what other info do you have on firefox? Thanx~Angela
 
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