Newbe with multiple questions

[Iván]

I'm thinking of dula booting winXP/Linux. I'm new to Linux (I've never used it.) What would be the best distribution to start with. With what GUI? Also, how much better is Linux? Is is faster? Also, can I install it on a second harddrive without messing around with my primary WindowsXp drive? It has two partitions (main and recovery) plus a little free space (less than a couple of MB). All together it's a 40gig hardrive. The second harddrive has only one and a half gig, though. Can I repartition without messing up XP. Also, my hardware is pretty new. Will it support it? Are there any windows compatible Linux? Is it worth the head-ache to dual boot? So many questions, so little time. I'm in the middle of a lecture right now, so I'll post them later.

[FORTRAN gy]

Any mainstream linux distribution will set you up for dual booting as part of the install. Your windows drive will be left alone and you can set it to be the default OS on boot. Mandrake has the best install program I've seen. It does an excellent job of hardware detection. With 1.5 gig, you will need to be selective about the packages you install. If you're looking for more speed than you get with Win, go with a minimalist desktop like blackbox or fluxbox. A desktop like KDE will give you the Windows look and feel, but won't be noticeably faster. Just more stable.

[z0mbix]

Originally posted by Iván:
<STRONG>I'm thinking of dula booting winXP/Linux. I'm new to Linux (I've never used it.) What would be the best distribution to start with.</STRONG>

distrowatch (http://www.distrowatch.com) & Choosing a distro - a newbie guide (http://users.netwit.net.au/~pursang/distro.html)

<STRONG>With what GUI?</STRONG>

Window managers for X (http://www.xwinman.org/index.html)

<STRONG>Also, how much better is Linux?</STRONG>

ooh...at least 5

<STRONG>Is is faster?</STRONG>

depends what for

<STRONG>Also, can I install it on a second harddrive without messing around with my primary WindowsXp drive? It has two partitions (main and recovery) plus a little free space (less than a couple of MB).</STRONG>

To do it probably you'd really need to make some space available to install linux on. You can install onto a FAT partition but it's not really as reliable and stable.

<STRONG>Can I repartition without messing up XP.</STRONG>

Depends on how technical you are

<STRONG>Also, my hardware is pretty new. Will it support it?</STRONG>

What's your hardware? That might help.

[Iván]

Hardware specs:
Pavilion xt983
Athlon thunderbird 1.4 Ghz
384 mb pc133 ram (with 32 for shared memory)
S3 pro-savage
via ac'97 soundcard
km-133/kl-133a
unused 10/100 network card
lucent winmodem 56k
what else? let me know.

[danrees]

Originally posted by Iván:
<STRONG>Hardware specs:
Pavilion xt983
Athlon thunderbird 1.4 Ghz
384 mb pc133 ram (with 32 for shared memory)
S3 pro-savage
via ac'97 soundcard
km-133/kl-133a
unused 10/100 network card
lucent winmodem 56k
what else? let me know.</STRONG>

With a spec like that, any of the recent Linux distros will be as happy as Larry. Head over to the links mentioned above, see what you like the look of, and buy a few distros from somewhere like http://www.linuxcentral.com. Alternatively, you can download ISOs yourself if you have a speedy net connection and CD burner (http://www.linuxiso.org).

Also, be aware that winmodems aren't very pleasant to use under Linux. It can be done, and your modem should work fine, but external serial modems are less hassle. See http://www.dwrees.co.uk/lucent_install.shtml for my newbie-friendly Lucent winmodem installation guide.

[rwtoften]

Hi, yes you can run xp in a daul boot with linux, with the 1.5 hd you will be limited on what you install, right now I'm runnung dual boot with xp and mk8.1. My system is 3mnths old and mandrake found all the hardware, few minor problems with video card but solved.I really don't use xp, just family, run linux 99.9% of the time.You might need a program called PartitionMagic to set up your hds,if decide to install on a different hd then xp, if not mandrake linux will set up the hd for you. good luck
god bless