Omnimaga
General Discussion => Technology and Development => Computer Usage and Setup Help => Topic started by: BrownyTCat on September 24, 2011, 06:09:59 pm
-
I have to keep Windows XP on my bedroom desktop to play games on Steam, but should I add Mint for everyday stuff?
I already know the hardware is compatible since it had Mint before, and I usually use the Fluxbox one. If I should get it, which one should I get, or should I just use a different distribution?
-
i love puppy linux. Great if you only have a little ram. not sure about duel booting and stuff though,
I can never get my computer to load an os :P So i use puppy linux cd to boot the os initially then i can take it out
-
I've used an Linux distro beyond Ubuntu... sadly... :-(
Ah well.
It's worked great for me, at least. Just another option I suppose.
-
If you're concerned about the space you should reserve for linux, don't be afraid to make it smaller, especially since you can use your win partition inside linux. I often only have 40-60 GB out of 160 for my main linux partition, and I've never run out of space. Unless you use tons of multimedia on your pc, you should be fine.
And don't be afraid to use simpler distros just because others think that they're not as good. It simply means they're less customizable, which isn't always a bad thing, especially with new users.
I would like Puppy a lot more if it was more popular, but it's not. Honestly, for a low-ram install that actually has a few programs available in package form, I would use debian with LXDE or dwm. You can get them running on extremely low ram. (DSL, anyone?)
-
Do it. Any modern variant of Linux is a nice alternative to Windows ;)
As for partition size, Linux obviously requires much less memory than Windows, but go ahead.I've used an Linux distro beyond Ubuntu... sadly... :-(
Ah well.
It's worked great for me, at least. Just another option I suppose.
Mint is actually a variation of Ubuntu.
-
I thought Windows took around 6 terabytes of diskspace and Mint about 1 gigabyte? ???
J/k but I was sure Windows was considerably larger in size, so I would guess its partition is much larger, right?
-
I thought Windows took around 6 terabytes of diskspace and Mint about 1 gigabyte? ???
J/k but I was sure Windows was considerably larger in size, so I would guess its partition is much larger, right?
Terabytes O.O
-
Well, depends how you'll use Linux and the size of your hard drive. I would say 2/3 of the space for Windows, since Windows and most programs are considerably larger than their equivalent on Linux and you might install more stuff on Linux. If you're gonna spend more time with Windows such as installing the whole Adobe suite and all of your Steam games I would say more like 3/4.
-
I thought Windows took around 6 terabytes of diskspace and Mint about 1 gigabyte? ???
J/k but I was sure Windows was considerably larger in size, so I would guess its partition is much larger, right?
XP is much smaller than 7. I think I'll use Mint since that's my favorite one. Probably split off a bit less than half of my 200GB internal HDD.
-
That sounds like it should work perfectly. Have fun!
-
So, how is Mint? I use Ubuntu (Wubi) right now, but I've got 200gb of free space all set up for a linux partition. (I've still got 250gb for Windows). So, what should I go with? Ubuntu, or Mint? Why?
-
I would say mint unless you really like Unity. Otherwise, mint has a less nonsensical approach to handling new concepts. LMDE would be even better.
If you've used linux before, maybe you could try Debian. The installation process is about as simple as Mint's nowadays. Ubuntu has simplified their installer to the point of being fully automated, though, so if you really hate the initial install, go with it. (Win XP's was harder than Debian's is now though :P)
The only complaint I have with debian right now is that the testing version is only about 2 months old, so there are hundreds of updates all the time. The system isn't unstable, but it's kind of annoying, especially considering how often kernel modules are updated, which requires a restart. Mint (not LMDE) and Ubuntu won't have this problem: They'll have 300 updates right after installing, and then a slow trickle until the next release comes out.
Also, Mint won't use Gnome Shell, which is about as bloaty as KDE4 was when it first came out. It will use the improved gdm3 system, though, just with the classic Gnome Desktop. Ubuntu, I believe, has its own desktop manager specifically for unity.
Oh, and it's good to move away from Wubi, regardless of your decision. It causes all sorts of issues, like not having swap, so running out of memory crashes your system.
-
Maybe use Windows in a VM :)
-
that sounds like it will work perfectly. i set up a situation exactly like that one a week ago for a friend of mine, and haven't run into any issues yet.
-
Mint and Windows side by side is always possible! :) For the bootloader, you can either opt to use Grub or ntldr. (The former will need a bit more work.)
I've even used Mint on a USB HDD! :D (Although it has died recently, and I'm trying to back up stuff... :P)
-
Ntldr is the one that really needs work, or using wubi (which, as I said earlier, isnt ideal.) Grub autoconfigures for you upon install to use either.