Thread: linux newbie

Iso can be burnt to cd or dvd depending on which they are. Then boot of it. Some linux iso's are what they call a Live CD which boots to ram but doesn't install on your hard drive so you can test it to see if you like it. Even if you have windows you can try a Live CD without upsetting any windows settings. If you like it there's usually an icon to install on hard drive.

Most, if not all, linux ISOs will boot into an installation menu if you have your BIOS set to boot off the CD drive first. What version of Linux are we talking about? Usually just follow the instructions in the installation menu and accept the defaults works, and in the scenario you outline, unless the hardware is very unusual (or very old) it should work. If you have less than 256MB memory and less than 1MHz processor, you will probably find you need to use one of the systems that are fairly small, and the current popular desktops really need a little more than these to function well, and you need at least 512Mb, preferably more, (plus a fancy video card) to run the 3D desktops. But the disk space and computer requirements are generally less than for XP.

You might find it useful to get one of the Linux magazines (Linux format is the one I'd suggest) as they usually come with both a bootable CD plus instructions as to how to use them.

John

do i just copy the file to cd? doesnt seem to want to boot ( even on a windows machine) just asks what program i would like to use to open the file.

What am i doing wrong?

Wazza

Originally Posted by Wazza

do i just copy the file to cd? doesnt seem to want to boot ( even on a windows machine) just asks what program i would like to use to open the file.

What am i doing wrong?

Wazza

You need to burn the iso file to a cd, it should just open your disc writing program (nero etc) when you click on it. Which linux are you going to use,i have Kubuntu on my spare pc and find it user friendly.

Originally Posted by Wazza

do i just copy the file to cd? doesnt seem to want to boot ( even on a windows machine) just asks what program i would like to use to open the file.

What am i doing wrong?

Wazza

You need to burn the .iso file to a CD/DVD (whichever it is intended for) as a CD/DVD image, not a file. Not sure how you do this in Windows, as I don't use Windows to any extent! But knowing this you should be able to figure out how to do it, and your burning program should allow this as an option.

John