Ubuntu Users

Dreadlorde · 06-09-07, 10:50 AM

I just got ubuntu, was going to install, but want to keep windows and everything else I have installed too. Was wondering if anyone could give me a tutorial.

Thanks.

Jesamyn · 06-09-07, 10:54 AM

This is an excellent tutorial and walkthrough, imo. I installed Fluxbuntu (stripped-down Ubuntu with Fluxbox, because I like minimalism) and found it invaluable.

ReverendD · 06-09-07, 10:57 AM

Actually the Ubunutu site has a dozen or so tutorials to instal and run Ubuntu in the forums. I myself have Ubuntu running with Windows XP, I however opted for a clean install of both since it is the preferred method to get them both running nicely together.

Only thing I will mention however is be careful on sharing a drive between the 2 OS's on the same disk. I made a partition Fat32 so Ubuntu and Win could share info, and for the most part it works ok, but once in awhile I get some issue where that particular drive needs a dskchk/dskscan on startup. It usually occurs only after I have been in Ubuntu moving files around on that drive. I have also run into the prob with WIn or Ubun hanging up during boot and not booting properly. I would suggest using an old Box if you have one and throw Ubun on it. I plan on doing that myself here before long myself.

Dreadlorde · 06-09-07, 11:25 AM

my hard drive is NTFS, would I be able to use ubuntu and windows xp on the same hard drive?

jetpig · 06-09-07, 11:39 AM

what you will have to do is repartition. the general method i used to do this: defragment... 4 or 5 times (yes 4 or 5 times to get everything to the start of the drive) next note how much freespace you have. the ubuntu installer can be told to use the freespace. it will do the rest itself.

I've got ubuntu and xp dual booting and i haven't booted into xp in about a month. i'm mostly keeping it waiting for bioshock and such.

also the ubuntu forums and wiki are INVALUABLE. and of course google

ReverendD · 06-09-07, 11:42 AM

Yes. When you install Ubuntu, it will help you to repartition your drive so it can use some of the empty space for itself. It will also format the partition it takes over to its own setup. Ubuntu can read files on NTFS drives, but in order to write you will need another program (cant recall its name atm) to allow it, and its not guarenteed to work. It also can be found on the Ubuntu forums though.

Ubuntu will also install one of various boot loaders so you can choose which OS to laod into on startup. It defaults to Ubun, but with a few small changes to a file you can change that to be Win instead.

If this is your first foray into *nix, then I really really really suggest getting another box to install it on and then just go to town. That way when something gets totally screwed, you havent lost Win and you have learned what not to do. lol Linux really is nice, much better than Win in many respects, but it does require either some experience with command lines or no sense of fear.

Once you get used to it though, you will prob only go back to windows for Games (unless you Get WINE to work properly) or nostalgia.

ReverendD · 06-09-07, 11:44 AM

Originally Posted by jetpig

I've got ubuntu and xp dual booting and i haven't booted into xp in about a month. i'm mostly keeping it waiting for bioshock and such.

Are you running WoW on Ubuntu? I havent had much luck with WINE lately (havent put a lot of work into it either though).

Also, have you hit any snags with it snagging during boot and just freezing @ the Ubun load screen?

Dreadlorde · 06-09-07, 11:47 AM

I think I'm going to have my mom bring home an old computer from her work and I'll try Ubuntu on that to see if I even like it.

Jesamyn · 06-09-07, 12:20 PM

Might want to try a livecd too. That's one way to check out many linux distros without having to install.

I've gotten WoW working on Fluxbuntu with Wine, but I wound up going back to XP for gaming. The performance was fine, but I have too much of a habit of tabbing out of game to surf during breaks in gameplay.

Xolan · 06-09-07, 03:29 PM

Get a copy of Cedega. Transgaming supports running wow through it, and the performace is just about the same as in windows. The only gripe I've been having so far is not being able to /reloadui (it just won't load anything :P). The changes are made though it's just a matter or restarting the game. Still trying to figure that one out...

guice · 06-09-07, 04:11 PM

Cedega isn't really worth the monthly membership price; WINE easily runs WoW just as well, if not better, out of the box: sudo apt-get install wine.

You can configure wine with: winecfg.

The only gotchas in WINE are sound, need to set it up in winecfg and you need to run in OpenGL mode.

Everything else runs just fine.... well, there is one bug some people get hit by. No clue what it is exactly, but in OpenGL mode, WINE will or will not crash on exit or any video setting changes. Only happens in OpenGL mode and it doesn't effect everybody. You either always have the problem or never.

Dreadlorde · 06-09-07, 04:13 PM

What does Cedega do? And what does WINE do? I'm waiting for my mom to bring home a computer so I can test Ubuntu to see if I even like it.

**Shirik** · 06-09-07, 04:29 PM

Originally Posted by Dreadlorde

What does Cedega do? And what does WINE do? I'm waiting for my mom to bring home a computer so I can test Ubuntu to see if I even like it.

I don't know enough about Cedega to give it justice, but WINE is an API abstraction layer. It works they way you would expect an emulator to (but, as its name indicates, "WINE is not an emulator", it is much faster than an emulator because it does not emulate anything, it provides the Windows APIs to executables). In essense, it allows you to run Windows programs. In fact, believe it or not, WoW runs faster through WINE for me than it does on a Windows platform.

guice · 06-09-07, 06:25 PM

WINE is an API wrapper. As Shirik said, it's not an emulator. WINE is a wrapper, hands down. It listens for Windows API calls and then redirects them to the Linux equivalent.

WINE is what you would use to get Windows Applications, including WoW, to run in Linux. You can even use WINE for programs like City of Heroes, EverQuest II, Starcraft, etc -- however performances do vary depending on the number of Windows specific calls that are made.

Dreadlorde · 06-09-07, 07:39 PM

Now I'm starting to have doubt's about Ubuntu if I have to have a separate program to run program to run programs, or is this just if I have Ubuntu and windows installed on the same hard drive? Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Doomborne · 06-09-07, 07:44 PM

My advice; keep a stripped-down Windows install for gaming, and you could pretty much do everything else with Ubuntu. Linux just isn't there for gaming yet, and probably won't be for several more years, if ever.

Dreadlorde · 06-13-07, 05:21 PM

Today I tried installing Ubuntu as dual boot, and it was horrible.

First thing that sucked was it took FOREVER (about 15 minutes) for it to show everything on the desktop, icons and task bars. Then, when I clicked on the install icon, it waited 25 minutes for it to pop up. Then I waited another 15 to 20 minutes for anything to show up when the install window eventually opened, nothing happened so I just restarted and booted windows, without being able to install Ubuntu.

I know Ubuntu is going to run slow before I have it installed because it's running on the live CD, but that long isn't worth it.

It may have been running that slow because I only have 256 mb of RAM (?).

elderbrock · 06-13-07, 06:49 PM

Yes with a live cd of linux 256mb memory is not good. the os will take all that memory and then some from a virtual hard drive space witch really makes it slow. Once install it will be better. But I still dont believe 256mb will be enough to run linux and wow in wine very well.

Jesamyn · 06-13-07, 10:12 PM

That amount of RAM would be fine for linux, but really not for WoW in wine in linux. There are various linux distros that are designed specifically for being lightweight and requiring fewer resources, and some that are designed specifically for older hardware. However, once you add the Windows API wrapper and WoW, you're going to be hurting.

Dreadlorde · 06-14-07, 07:33 AM

I wasn't going to run WoW in wine in Ubuntu, I was going to have a dual boot so I could play WoW on windows and do everything else on Ubuntu.