Which Ubuntu do I download?

**don62** · February 4th, 2014

The HDD on my HP Compaq Presario CQ61-402SA (2GB memory)
has crashed & I want to replace it with a 64Gb SSD.
So I need an OS & thought that I would tiptoe into the world of Ubuntu.
But which one is beat for this laptop & which should I download.
Any advice would be gratefully received.

**whitesmith** · February 4th, 2014

Your RAM is a bit anemic for 2014 (and so for that matter is a 64 gig SSD) but you should be ok with Lubuntu. Cheers.

**deadflowr** · February 4th, 2014

You should be able to run any version of Ubuntu
But here are some links to the various Ubuntu off-shoots
Kubuntu

Xubuntu

Lubuntu

Ubuntu Gnome

Though your system can handle 64-bit versions, you might consider going with 32-bit.

Also here's normal Ubuntu

You'll find everyone has their own favorite.
Hope you find yours.

**don62** · February 6th, 2014

Thanks for input guys. Now agreeing Whitesmith, 64gig is a bit meagre, although I don't want to spend much on this venture which could easily go pear shaped. Maybe I'll go for a 250gig HDD instead of SDD. More thinking!

**BBQdave** · February 6th, 2014

Originally Posted by whitesmith

Your RAM is a bit anemic for 2014 and so for that matter is a 64 gig SSD...

Running without worry, Ubuntu Unity 12.04LTS (64-bit) on Lenovo Thinkpad T400 (2Gb of RAM and 160Gb 7200RPM HD)

I also have Ubuntu Unity 12.04LTS (64-bit) on a Toshiba Satellite c655-s5503 with 64Gb SSD - BLAZING FAST

I use this notebook in combination with a portable usb drive (extra data storage)

For $50 on Newegg you can get a 64Gb SSD or 160+ GB 7200RPM HD. A 7200RPM hard drive is a nice compromise of good storage and good speed. Again though, depending on the amount of data you are pushing around (data storage needs), SSD's are incredible fast.

**grahammechanical** · February 6th, 2014

When did we get to the situation where 64 GB disk space is too small for Ubuntu? It simply is not true. And 1 GB of RAM is enough. The amount of video memory is a more important consideration.

I have several installs of Ubuntu and its flavours. They will install in less than 10GB. I have 1GB of RAM. And right now with only Chromium running I am using 650 MB of Ram. A lot of work has been done on Ubuntu for phones and this also benefits Ubuntu on the desktop. I see a 15 - 20 % reduction in memory usage from Ububntu 12.04 to Ubuntu 13.10. Swap hardly gets used at all. And things will be even better for Ubuntu 14.04.

My user experience is great. My video memory is also 1GB and that most certainly helps.

How much data do you think that you will generate? Another important factor that you should consider is Trim support for SSDs. That too is getting better for Ubuntu.

http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2013/12/t...d-ubuntu-14-04

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trim_(computing)

Regards.

**whitesmith** · February 7th, 2014

Originally Posted by grahammechanical

When did we get to the situation where 64 GB disk space is too small for Ubuntu? It simply is not true.

It isn't too small. In fact, it's generous. I assumed the OP would opt to put /home on his SSD. There's no way for us to know what his storage needs are. Hence my "anemic" reference. If he's just experimenting he only needs 5-10 GB for root and maybe another 2 gigs for swap + whatever is required for ~. My own /home almost fills a 240 GB SSD, so I would have wasted money by underestimating how rapidly these partitions can grow, especially since so many people (including yours truly) now have music collections on their computer. Cheers.