Dual-boot users....

[Faileas]

If anyone here is using dual boot system of Windows XP Pro/IE and Fedora/Firefox, I'd like to hear about any experiences you've had (good or bad), general advice, and so on. I'm looking into buying my first computer, and thinking about this specific setup.

[jayd512]

Hello and Welcome!

I don't dual-boot anymore, but when I first got into Linux, that was the way I started.
And it was exactly what you're asking about... Windows XP and Fedora.
What exactly are you wondering about?

[oz]

I'm looking into buying my first computer, and thinking about this specific setup.

Just follow the instructions here for downloading and burning the ISO file to disk as an image, then boot with the new installation disk and install Linux. The installer should offer you the chance to dual boot between Linux and Windows if that's what you want to do. If you don't have Windows installed yet, I'd recommend installing it before Linux.

Hope you have fun with it!

[devils casper]

Dual boot is very easy and you don't have to do anything except assigning correct partition to installer.

You can dual boot or multiboot as many Windows/Linux distros as you like. I have Windows Xp + 5 Linux distros in my test machine.
Install Windows OS first. Create new partition(s) for Fedora using Disk Utility available in its LiveCD/DVD and start installation. Installer will detect Windows OS and setup dual boot itself.

[Faileas]

Hello and Welcome!

I don't dual-boot anymore, but when I first got into Linux, that was the way I started.
And it was exactly what you're asking about... Windows XP and Fedora.
What exactly are you wondering about?

Generally, I'm trying to decide if this dual-boot idea is worthwhile. Haven't been able to find much info on it other than brief mention in two books (Buying a Computer For Dummies, & Linux For Non-Geeks). Would like to hear what experiences others have had with it. When I study Cnet reviews I always focus on the user reviews, to see what problems they encountered. I have a few specific questions, but think that should wait til I've actually decided to go with the dual-boot....otherwise it could end up being a waste of your time. If you want, and its not too invasive, maybe you could tell me why you don't dual-boot anymore.

[oz]

Generally, I'm trying to decide if this dual-boot idea is worthwhile. Haven't been able to find much info on it other than brief mention in two books (Buying a Computer For Dummies, & Linux For Non-Geeks). Would like to hear what experiences others have had with it.

Searching these forums alone for dual-boot and/or dualboot should give you literally thousands of posts about dual-booting, many of which will should reveal some pros and cons of doing so. I suggest that as an option to you because you should be able to get more information quicker than you would by waiting for replies to this thread only.

Either way, best of luck to you and your experience with Linux whether it be a solo-boot, or dual-boot system.

[jayd512]

Question for you...
Do you have a fair level of comfort and experience with Windows? If so, go for the dual-boot. That way, you can still do what you need to do.
If not, if you're actually new to computers altogether, you might want to try a dedicated Linux box. No habits means no major issues.

*EDIT*
It made sense when I was typing, but now I feel like I should elaborate a bit... looks a little to terse.

When I started in Linux, I had almost no knowledge of computers or various OS's... didn't even realize that there were other OS's. I could find my way around in WinXP, but that wasn't really saying much at the time. So I didn't have any ingrained habits or methods to doing anything. So I decided on a dual-boot. XP on one drive, Fedora on the other. That way, no matter what, if I was really needing something done and couldn't get it going in Linux, I had a fallback.
That said, I wasn't booting XP very often after that, and ended up wiping it completely.
So, really, you need to look at the comfort level you have and compare it to what you might learn from the experience of starting fresh.

And as far as why I no longer dual-boot, it's because I've been Windows free for over 2 years now. I have no need for it, personally.

[Skeeter]

Generally, I'm trying to decide if this dual-boot idea is worthwhile. Haven't been able to find much info on it other than brief mention in two books (Buying a Computer For Dummies, & Linux For Non-Geeks). Would like to hear what experiences others have had with it. When I study Cnet reviews I always focus on the user reviews, to see what problems they encountered. I have a few specific questions, but think that should wait til I've actually decided to go with the dual-boot....otherwise it could end up being a waste of your time. If you want, and its not too invasive, maybe you could tell me why you don't dual-boot anymore.

I am VERY new to Linux, just ask Casper. I want to eventually get away from Windohs. 3 days ago all I knew about Linux was that it was an OS. I didn't know you could choose from so many Linux flavors. (I installed Linux Mint.) I thought Linux was just one OS like Windohs.
Last night with the great guys on this forum I was able to partition and install Linux. Now I can boot into Windohs or Linux!
Don't be afraid. With a Live CD you won't get stuck with a blank computer. Just make sure you have your Windohs CD handy also.

[Faileas]

Thanks for the advice, but when its time to join software to hardware, there's no chance I'll try the DIY method. I stick to the simplistic...the brainiac stuff I will hire a tech guy to do.

[Faileas]

Thanks for the advice, but when its time to join software to hardware, there's no chance I'll try the DIY method. I stick to the simplistic...the brainiac stuff I will hire a tech guy to do.

The above message is in answer to Ozar's first post (reply button refused to allow me to answer direct...apparently I'm not qualified to quote any reply having url), so this is my way around this.

In answer to Ozar's second post, rest assured I did indeed search for my question before posting, and aware there are hundreds of pages on 'dual-boot OS'. I used about an hour of computer time sifting through the first maybe 20 pages, without success. I then did the math. At 20 pages an hour it would of taken around 15 hours to reach the last page. I get 1 to 2 hours of time on public computers a day, and I don't go to libraries every day. Add to that I had no success with the first 20 pages, which means its a gamble, and the odds do not seem in my favor. At that point I decided to just ask the question. Good call? I don't know.