Sony Vaio cw16fg Win7 to XP+Linux (dualboot)

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01-13-2010
jughead

Sony Vaio cw16fg Win7 to XP+Linux (dualboot)

Guys

I got a new machine (sony vaio, vpccw16fg, 2.53 c2d, 4gb ddr3 ram, 512 nvidia graphics card) with win7 pre-installed. I want to downgrade win7 to xp and also add linux on another partition.

I am planning redhat linux, but the worries are for drivers as am unable to find a forum/experienced person who has done tht :) .. me being a newbie on linux.

Anything basic/advanced (manuals/links/suggestions) about going for dualboot tht you guys can suggest will help me... my frn who is again not too exp suggests to go for installing linux first (prepare a rec disk for win7, get a linux bootable cd, format, partition and install linux on 1 partition); but will linux bootable contain partitioning s/w?

Rgds
JugHead
01-13-2010
devils casper

Hi and Welcome !

Install Windows OS before Linux. Most of the time, Windows OS doesn't work if you install it after Linux. Linux installers detect Windows OS and setup dual boot without any problem.

Are you planning to purchase License of RHEL? If not, consider any other distro instead of RHEL. Fedora and CentOS are RedHat based and free to download/install. Check this Poll on Favorite Linux distro.

If you have any other question, do not hesitate to post here.
01-13-2010
reed9

As said, install Windows first.

I would not recommend RHEL or other server oriented distro for general desktop use.

First, they usually use an older kernel, which means hardware support will not be as good as a distro with a recent kernel. This can especially be a problem with newer laptops.

Second, you have limited access to recent software. If you need/want a newer version of a program it can be a huge hassle.

Third, the official software repositories are usually somewhat limited, so you do not have easy access to as wide a range of software as with many desktop oriented distros. Software selection can be expanded by adding 3rd party repositories, but packaging standards are not always up to par with unofficial repositories.

I would recommend going with the latest Linux Mint or OpenSuse.
01-14-2010
jughead

What About The Drivers?

First of all, thanks to all those who replied.

& now excuse me for my ignorance regarding Linux and help me :confused: as I am wondering about the drivers right now - I read on the net that drivers are usually built into the Linux Kernel? Is it easy to find drivers for the sony vaoi hardware for any flavorof Linux?

Also, I read that ppl prefer debian (Ubuntu) more that redhat? Is the one recommended (LinuxMint) a debian category? Can I find the drivers for this easily?

Also, as I never used linux in my entire life, am wondering if the MS Office type equivalent s/w packages are available in Linux?

Thanks, JugHead
01-14-2010
reed9

Quote:

& now excuse me for my ignorance regarding Linux and help me as I am wondering about the drivers right now - I read on the net that drivers are usually built into the Linux Kernel? Is it easy to find drivers for the sony vaoi hardware for any flavorof Linux?

Drivers are usually included in the kernel. There are exceptions, the common two being graphics cards and wireless. Well, to be clear, the kernel includes support for a huge number of graphics and wireless cards built in. But some non-free, ie, proprietary, drivers need to be installed separately.

This includes the nvidia graphics driver (though there are free (as in speech) options, they do not yet support 3d acceleration and such), the ATI catalyst drivers (there are very good open source drivers for some ATI cards), and the Broadcom wl wireless driver. There is an open source driver for many broadcom cards, the b43, but it requires non-free firmware (though the open firmware project is working on this), and there is a non-free driver released by broadcom which covers most the rest of broadcom cards.

It is very unlikely you will have a problem with any other hardware. (Well, printers maybe.)

Ubuntu is the most popular linux distro currently. Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu, but includes some nice custom tools and out of the box support for non-free media, such as flash and playing commercial DVDs.

Quote:

Also, as I never used linux in my entire life, am wondering if the MS Office type equivalent s/w packages are available in Linux?

Openoffice is the main option here.