A First Timer

[DavidCG]

I just figured I would post a greeting as a complete newbie to Linux. Today I became a convert. As a long time Windows sufferer I was facing wiping my hard drive and spending 4 or 5 hours reinstalling Windows XP for the 100th time (after Vista I didn't want to make the jump to 7).

I had recently began dating a member here (Artesia) who had been subtly talking up Linux for weeks. When my computer imploded two nights ago she suggested I finally make the leap. Last night I ran my “dead” laptop off of the Ubuntu live CD and it worked flawlessly. I was so happy with how easy it worked.

This morning Artesia and I formated my drive and partitioned it off (I still wanted the option to boot from Windows). We had problems, but every one of them stemmed from getting Windows back up with the correct drivers. After several hours of screwing with it I gave up and we just started Ubuntu. What took hours with Windows took minutes. EVERYTHING worked right off the bat. Even someone of my limited intelligence found it pretty easy. With minimum instruction by Artesia (she is far smarter than me) I have been happily exploring and playing with my new OS. I have had to email her questions a few times but I am pleased and excited.

The only problem I have now (besides a non-working Windows partition) is that I am now regretting my partition choices. I decided on 15 gigs for Ubuntu and 45 for Windows (I have a small HD). I have decided I completely hate Windows and though I would like to get rid of completely I'm sure I will need it down the road. I am now seriously considering starting again and reversing the distribution (or maybe 40/20). It means starting again but I think it will be worth it.

Anyway, thank you Artesia for introducing me to Linux and this forum.

[oz]

Welcome to the forums... glad you are having fun with Linux!

The only problem I have now (besides a non-working Windows partition) is that I am now regretting my partition choices. I decided on 15 gigs for Ubuntu and 45 for Windows (I have a small HD).

You can use the Parted Magic LiveCD to easily shrink your Windows partition and then expand your Linux partition should you ever decide that you want to do that:

Parted Magic News


Edit: ...forgot to mention that it's a free download.

[DavidCG]

ozar, thank you. That sound like a great idea. I'll take a look at it tomorrow (it's a bit late now).

[ironduke]

Just get a new, bigger hard drive and use that instead. You can always access your old hard drive with a USB adapter (or portable enclosure) and you won't risk losing any more more of your old data.

[MikeTbob]

Hello and Welcome to the forums.
You might also consider installing only Linux and running Windows in a VM or Virtual Machine as it's called , (It's just a Virtual Environment) for when you only need to use Windows every now and then.