Windows to Linux (Ubuntu) - 1

Its been two full weeks since I installed Ubuntu inside Windows XP (click here to see how) and and I have booted into XP just once (Oh God! I love Windows' games). I'll say thats not bad for a person who has always been critical of non-Windows systems for the fact that the variety of software packages just can't be compared. I did miss Windows for two days, which I spent getting Xampp to a good working condition and I even pulled my hair at the mess wrong (too less or too much) permissions can create. After that, it was a smooth drive. Installing new software can't be easier - just one command. Startup and Shutdown speeds are also very impressive. Memory consumption is less (thanks to no Avast and no ZoneAlarm) and firefox performs better although I can't update it to the latest 3.5 as Firefox for Ubuntu is customised and it takes a few months for the latest version to be customised.

Games aside, Ubuntu is a brilliant OS to work on, whether you are a developer or a casual user. Whichever software you may have been using, there is an alternative available for free ("Free as in Beer, and Free as in Freedom") in the Open Source world. If you just can't work without MS technologies like Silverlight or the open source alternatives don't seem to fill the place of your expensive software, then its no compulsion (obviously!).

Now, let me see more of it to write more of it.

Dual Booting Ubuntu Linux in Windows

It will not be wrong to say that installing Ubuntu in Windows is the easiest thing to do for anybody. All you need is Windows already installed, a CD of Ubuntu (which you can order or download from ubuntu.com) and I recommend atleast 12 GB of free space, How do we do it?

• Boot into Windows.
• Insert the Ubuntu CD. On autoplay, you will be given three options, select "Install inside Windows".
• Select the appropriate drive. For installation size, go for the maximum that your free space allows.
• Set the username and password and hit Enter.
• Installation takes 6-7 minutes and asks you to reboot.
• Reboot and there you go, select Ubuntu in the choice of OS that you get.
  

Linux (DSL) and GCC on Windows using VirtualBox

If you need GCC and cannot leave Windows this method is the most viable, in terms of both memory and time.
First, you need to download three things:

• DSL - Damn Small Linux (~50MB)
• Sun VirtualBox (~70MB)
• GCC (~20MB, to be downloaded from inside dsl)
  

Install VirtualBox like any other application.

Now you have to install dsl on a virtual Hard Disk on VB (virtualbox).

This is the method that I used (source: http://blogs.sun.com/AngeloJ/entry/virtualbox_and_dsl_damn_small )

(1) Create a New VM

Click the "new" icon and follow all the defaults ( note: I did not change any of the default settings the first time around )

(2) Boot from the DSL ISO image

Click on the "CD/DVD-ROM" on the "Details" tab

Click on the ISO radion button, then select the dsl *.iso file you just downloaded

(3) Boot the DSL VM from the ISO

Click the "Start" icon

... after a few boot screens you should have a working desktop

(4) Install to Hard Drive

This is the only tedious step, since you have to create your hard drive, virtually....

click the terminal icon on the bottom left of the screen in the panel

- type "sudo -s"
- type "cfdisk"
- Select "Y" when asked Do you wish to start with a zero table
- You will now see your cfdisk applicaton. Use the arrow keys and select "NEW"
-
Select "Primary" then select the size (by default it should be 2GB, but VirtualBox will grow this on-demand )
- Select "Bootable" (you see the word "Boot" under the Flags coloumn)
- Select "Write"
- When prompted with a (Y/N) type "YES" and hit enter.
- Select "QUIT"
-
now back at the command prompt type "mkfs /dev/hda1"
- now type "dsl-hdinstall"
- you will be prompted for the target drive type "hda1" and press enter
- Select "Y" for multiuser logins
- Select "Y" for ext3 filesystwm
- Select "Y" to continue.
- Select "Y" when asked "Proceed to install a boot loader"
- Type "g" for GRUB
- Type "Y" when prompted for reboot
- You will see DSL shut down and press "Enter" when prompted
-
Important: At the VirtualBox boot screen, click "Machine->Pause" from the Menu
- Click "Devices->Unmount CD/DVD-ROM" from the Menu
- Click "Machine->Resume" from the Menu, and continue booting from the Hard Drive
- You should be prompted to enter a password for the "root" user and the "dsl" user.
- If it starts and you see your DSL desktop you have succesfully intalled DSL to your Hard Drive!

Installing GCC on DSL

Run the web browser inside dsl and download gcc from http://mirror.internode.on.net/pub/damnsmalllinux/mydsl/system/gcc1-with-libs.dsl

Go to the terminal and run this command

sudo mydsl-load gcc1-with-libs.dsl

There you go.

Alternatively, download GCC in Windows and transfer to dsl using a pendrive and run the same command.