Making The Move To Linux

[sw1tch..]

So I want to make the move to using Linux full time. I have been using Windows since the dark ages and recently have been playing with various distros trying to find the right one for me. I like Ubuntu and Fedora at the moment.

The major reason why I haven't made the move is based on the below reasons:

1. I still like to game. I know about wine and have had a few attempts which failed even with some simple old school games like Baldur's Gate.

2. I am studying to finish the MCSE and some 2008 certifications and CBT Nuggets use DRM which won't play on Linux... Yes I know the irony.

3. I am a Senior Consultant that mainly deals with Microsoft environments on a daily basis.

I am at the point with Windows where it all feels the same, almost lifeless if you will. I am bored with it and while my system is rock solid its just plain boring....

Any advice? Oh and dual booting is a possibility but not ideal.

[redvamp128]

Well you could split the difference and either Dual boot-

Or Run Linux with windows inside a Virtual Box.

[Growled Member]

Gaming just sucks in Virtualbox. The only real options are dual booting and wine. Probably the best option for a gamer in Linux is to use Steam. It works well with wine and Crossover Games.

[tsupersonic]

Your best bet is to dual boot, either create another partition on your current HDD or buy a new HDD. You get the best of both worlds this way

[sw1tch..]

Thanks for the quick responses. I think dual booting will be the go..

As I haven't spent much time with Linux I was hoping someone could answer some questions around best practice for dual booting etc..

1. As GRUB (by previous attempts) has taken over as the boot loader (Windows installed first) from a recovery perspective (say Windows craps out and needs to be re-installed) which is better?

a - Installing Windows and Linux on the same disk?

b - Installing Windows and Linux on separate disks?

I have 6 disks in my machine so I'm not too concerned either way. I'm just a bit of a freako about downtime and being able to recover the system in the event of failure. I suppose this is the main reason I haven't made the switch or dual booted yet.

Thanks again.

[Evolution]

So I want to make the move to using Linux full time. I have been using Windows since the dark ages and recently have been playing with various distros trying to find the right one for me. I like Ubuntu and Fedora at the moment.

The major reason why I haven't made the move is based on the below reasons:

1. I still like to game. I know about wine and have had a few attempts which failed even with some simple old school games like Baldur's Gate.

2. I am studying to finish the MCSE and some 2008 certifications and CBT Nuggets use DRM which won't play on Linux... Yes I know the irony.

3. I am a Senior Consultant that mainly deals with Microsoft environments on a daily basis.

I am at the point with Windows where it all feels the same, almost lifeless if you will. I am bored with it and while my system is rock solid its just plain boring....

Any advice? Oh and dual booting is a possibility but not ideal.

Have you considered upgrading to Windows 7 instead ;) ? Seems like you're switching for the wrong reasons and that you just want a hobby OS.

[redvamp128]

you could try-- I have seen it working-- not installing grub but use -- Wingrub..

http://members.iinet.net.au/~herman546/p9.html

It still lets you boot linux but uses your MBR - Or Vista Bootloader (though you have to use the tool Easy BCD to edit it to add the line linking to it) That and Easy BCD also works in 7 I have been told.

Edited June 13, 2009 by redvamp128

[sw1tch..]

Have you considered upgrading to Windows 7 instead ;) ? Seems like you're switching for the wrong reasons and that you just want a hobby OS.

Yeah I have been using 7 since the first beta. While it is awesome and a big leap forward for Microsoft, Its still boring...

you could try-- I have seen it working-- not installing grub but use -- Wingrub..

http://members.iinet.net.au/~herman546/p9.html

It still lets you boot linux but uses your MBR - Or Vista Bootloader (though you have to use the tool Easy BCD to edit it to add the line linking to it)

That seems pretty good. I might give that a go. Thanks :)

[Evolution]

Yeah I have been using 7 since the first beta. While it is awesome and a big leap forward for Microsoft, Its still boring...

Well Linux is also "boring" with its limited Desktop environments.... so good luck....

Sure it's interesting learning how to configure everything etc.... but that dies after time.

[Andre S. Veteran]

What's wrong with a system that works? If anything else, you're making a good argument to stay with Windows. You can toy around with Linux all you like in a VM, virtual box supports OpenGL so it's about as good as running it natively. Hit Right-Ctrl + F and it's as if it was running native, + you keep full compatibility for all your games and Windows applications.

[sw1tch..]

Well Linux is also "boring" with its limited Desktop environments.... so good luck....

Sure it's interesting learning how to configure everything etc.... but that dies after time.

Well yes and no. I have just found that over the years I have wanted to configure something this way or that and have not been able.

I suppose I sit on the fence and am not biased either way. That being said I didn't start this thread to be a flame war either so when I say boring I mean I am just over it being the same old, same old.

[Evolution]

Well yes and no. I have just found that over the years I have wanted to configure something this way or that and have not been able.

I suppose I sit on the fence and am not biased either way. That being said I didn't start this thread to be a flame war either so when I say boring I mean I am just over it being the same old, same old.

So you're a computer programmer? If you have a decent understanding of various computer languages then yes you can do that.

[redvamp128]

Limited?

Okay just to name a few major players..

Window Mangers-

LXDE, GNOME, KDE, XFCE, FLUX BOX, OPEN BOX, ENLIGHTENMENT -- Those are just the major players-- there are others.

And All of them can be installed at the same time, plus they are Free.

[sw1tch..]

So you're a computer programmer? If you have a decent understanding of various computer languages then yes you can do that.

No I am not a programmer. I work as a SMB Consultant and most of my days are spent working with Windows environments that include Server 2003/2008 and SBS 2003/2008.

[Evolution]

Sorry, I misunderstood what you meant by configuration... sure you can install apps and modules. And yes the DEs are limited.... you've got Gnome which hasn't changed for years and isn't entirely intuitive and then you've got KDE which is rapidly changing but over the last year has started making it more difficult to manipulate things.

XFCE = gnome light, LXDE = seems like a gnome variant, and then you have your window managers.

Nothing about them is really innovative or special... apart from KDE which tries too hard. None of them move the desktop environment up a notch, and don't appear to be on par with Windows. However Gnome 2.8 will make things interesting with their new shell, so there's definitely hope.

I've used Linux for years and still find myself going back to Windows because anything I can do in Linux, can be easily done in Windows for the most part, and the opposite isn't always true or as easily done.

If you haven't used Linux before I'd suggest something very inclusive such as Ubuntu or a variant known as Linux Mint. For now I'd recommend dual booting until you completely transition.

Edited June 13, 2009 by Evolution

[sw1tch..]

Sorry, I misunderstood what you meant by configuration... sure you can install apps and modules. And yes the DEs are limited.... you've got Gnome which hasn't changed for years and isn't entirely intuitive and then you've got KDE which is rapidly changing but over the last year has started making it more difficult to manipulate things.

XFCE = gnome light, LXDE = KDE light, and then you have your window managers.

Nothing about them is really innovative or special... apart from KDE which tries too hard. None of them move the desktop environment up a notch, and don't appear to be on par with Windows. However Gnome 2.8 will make things interesting with their new shell, so there's definitely hope.

I've used Linux for years and still find myself going back to Windows because anything I can do in Linux, can be easily done in Windows for the most part, and the opposite isn't always true or as easily done.

If you haven't used Linux before I'd suggest something very inclusive such as Ubuntu or a variant known as Linux Mint. For now I'd recommend dual booting until you completely transition.

Thanks for the response. I suppose that's why I am keen to make the move. When I say boring maybe I mean easy. I can do pretty much anything within Windows very easily with minimal need for configuration changes etc. I am sure a contributing factor to this has been my ever growing skill level.

I suppose the thing that excites my so far about linux is the feeling of having to put some effort in to get a result.

[Growled Member]

As GRUB (by previous attempts) has taken over as the boot loader (Windows installed first) from a recovery perspective (say Windows craps out and needs to be re-installed) which is better?

You can control Grub and get it to install anywhere you want.

http://zaher14.blogspot.com/2008/04/bootin...oot-loader.html

You can also use Wubi to install Ubuntu inside of Windows, just like any other program.

[freeeekyyy]

Well yes and no. I have just found that over the years I have wanted to configure something this way or that and have not been able.

I suppose I sit on the fence and am not biased either way. That being said I didn't start this thread to be a flame war either so when I say boring I mean I am just over it being the same old, same old.

If you just want something to screw around with, I'd say dual boot. You don't need to replace windows with linux, use both. That's what I do. Well, technically I dual boot windows and opensolaris, but same idea.

[Andre S. Veteran]

I can do pretty much anything within Windows very easily with minimal need for configuration changes etc

That's about the best argument you could ever make in favor of using Windows. :huh:

If you want to have it hard, no one's stopping you... what about installing MS-DOS and see if you can get productive on that? :p

[mezron]

I use a removeable hard drive enclosure on my system like this one. Works great on the boot drive.

It's really nice to just have several hard drives and boot off whatever one you want and not have to worry about bootloaders stepping on each others toes. You can dedicate a drive to Windows, one to whatever flavor of linux you like this week, etc. and not worry about messing up the important drive.

[a1ien]

You know, Linux does not float my boat. I'm a 100% windows user, but I like Solaris too. I think you should try it... compared to a Solaris workstation, Linux seems like a cheap replica made by hobbyists.

[Elv13]

a1ien, I am not agree with you. I would say the opposite. Solaris as desktop is a real joke. Except ZFS, there is nothing better than Linux. All you have is older packages, unstable/cropped application, incompatible API making porting effort a mess and everything is slower. Not talking about the hardware compatibility... That's my own experience. Did you tried Linux in the last decade (and I am not talking about *buntu)?

[markwolfe Veteran]

Well Linux is also "boring" with its limited Desktop environments.... so good luck....

...

XFCE = gnome light, LXDE = seems like a gnome variant, and then you have your window managers.

...

I'm not convinced you know what you are talking about. LXDE is OpenBox. Not Gnome based at all.

There are many choices in Linux. And each of them can be tweaked and themed. Calling the desktop environment choices "limited" is beyond absurd.

...

For now I'd recommend dual booting until you completely transition.

Ahhhh! You have come around to a piece of very sound advice for a newbie! :yes:

Dual boot them for a while. It sounds like the OP has a specific need for Windows, and Linux may not be the right tool to meet those needs. He might find Linux is a fun hobby OS he wants to keep around, but not use as a primary OS. He may find it to be an annoyance. He may find that wine allows Linux to suit all of his needs that were formerly met by Windows.

But only he will be able to tell for sure, and dual booting may be his best choice.

[Evolution]

I'm not convinced you know what you are talking about. LXDE is OpenBox. Not Gnome based at all.

There are many choices in Linux. And each of them can be tweaked and themed. Calling the desktop environment choices "limited" is beyond absurd.

Ahhhh! You have come around to a piece of very sound advice for a newbie! :yes:

Dual boot them for a while. It sounds like the OP has a specific need for Windows, and Linux may not be the right tool to meet those needs. He might find Linux is a fun hobby OS he wants to keep around, but not use as a primary OS. He may find it to be an annoyance. He may find that wine allows Linux to suit all of his needs that were formerly met by Windows.

But only he will be able to tell for sure, and dual booting may be his best choice.

Yes LXDE is the only one I don't know.... and limited is a relative term.... nothing in the DEs are innovative.... if you compare the type of changes present in Mac OS and Windows. The desktop environments have not changed much over time in the Linux world except for KDE, there tends to be 3 basic types of DEs in linux overall. I'm sure you do think there's lots of variety, but what I've seen is limited innovation in the grand scheme.

[markwolfe Veteran]

"Limited" = reduced choice/flexibility

"Innovative" has nothing to do with that.

You can argue "innovative", since there is a lot of subjectivity there that cannot be easily quantified.

But "limited" is easy to demonstrate choices and options. And, sorry to say, Linux has a HUUUUGE amount of variety and flexibility. More than Windows, and much more that what I have seen out of OSX, which seems to lock you into pretty much the one UI.