The Dream Is Over...

[glyons]

Sadly I'll have to stop using linux for a while. I recently bought a new laptop from Dell and forgot to buy the Windows XP MCE cd so I can't reinstall repartition or format the hard drive without losing my windows license (which I paid for :mad: ) and since I left the US to spend the holidays with my family in Colombia, I cannot call Dell and yell to get the bloody cds.

So, I'm pretty much stuck with Windows which is really sad because I've been using ubuntu almost exclusively for the last seven months.

Does anyone know if I can make Windows XP act like Gnome GUI-wise, using two panels instead of a Start Menu, and if there is any program to use global keyboard shortcuts in there.
I guess what I'll miss the most will be the xterm, I tried cygwin but it doesn't work as smoothly within windows.

I'll try to install ubuntu in a USB external drive when I have some free time.

I really don't understand why dell can't ship a bloody 10-cent disc for an OS I paid for.

[Brunellus]

there is very likely a 'recovery partition', and also a program that will allow you to generate a set of recovery discs (once only) using that partition.

[poofyhairguy]

Sadly I'll have to stop using linux for a while. I recently bought a new laptop from Dell and forgot to buy the Windows XP MCE cd so I can't reinstall repartition or format the hard drive without losing my windows license (which I paid for :mad: ) and since I left the US to spend the holidays with my family in Colombia, I cannot call Dell and yell to get the bloody cds.

So, I'm pretty much stuck with Windows which is really sad because I've been using ubuntu almost exclusively for the last seven months.

Does anyone know if I can make Windows XP act like Gnome GUI-wise, using two panels instead of a Start Menu, and if there is any program to use global keyboard shortcuts in there.
I guess what I'll miss the most will be the xterm, I tried cygwin but it doesn't work as smoothly within windows.

I'll try to install ubuntu in a USB external drive when I have some free time.

I really don't understand why dell can't ship a bloody 10-cent disc for an OS I paid for.

A live cd! Get a live CD!

[glyons]

there is very likely a 'recovery partition', and also a program that will allow you to generate a set of recovery discs (once only) using that partition.

There is a recovery partition but Dell doesn't include the utility to burn the cd anymore, also the recovery partition becomes useless if you format or repartition the HD

[KLineD]

Do as poofy suggested, get a live CD!!

I used Knoppix for a while and it was great, even Ubuntu has its own live CD. Get the live CD, boot from there and be patient with loading times until you can install ubuntu again.

[Rinzwind]

Sadly I'll have to stop using linux for a while. I recently bought a new laptop from Dell and forgot to buy the Windows XP MCE cd so I can't <..>
Hmmmmm. I hope this helps:
My XP serial is on the BACK side of the laptop. Did you flip your laptop over to see if you have 1?
Tho it's XP Pro I have I could burn a backup of my XP. It said how in 1 of the papers comming with the laptop. Maybe you can do that too?

[arpunk]

Sadly I'll have to stop using linux for a while. I recently bought a new laptop from Dell and forgot to buy the Windows XP MCE cd so I can't reinstall repartition or format the hard drive without losing my windows license (which I paid for ) and since I left the US to spend the holidays with my family in Colombia, I cannot call Dell and yell to get the bloody cds.

Yea, Colombia is nice :P

[glyons]

Hmmmmm. I hope this helps:
My XP serial is on the BACK side of the laptop. Did you flip your laptop over to see if you have 1?
Tho it's XP Pro I have I could burn a backup of my XP. It said how in 1 of the papers comming with the laptop. Maybe you can do that too?

Yeah, the sticker's there but it doesn't work with the retail version of XP MCE, I tried that in VMWARE, I guess they are using a custom OEM version for Dell.

hey arpunk, where are you from? I'm from Barranquilla.

[ubuntu27]

Sadly I'll have to stop using linux for a while. I recently bought a new laptop from Dell and forgot to buy the Windows XP MCE cd so I can't reinstall repartition or format the hard drive without losing my windows license (which I paid for :mad: ) and since I left the US to spend the holidays with my family in Colombia, I cannot call Dell and yell to get the bloody cds.

So, I'm pretty much stuck with Windows which is really sad because I've been using ubuntu almost exclusively for the last seven months.

Does anyone know if I can make Windows XP act like Gnome GUI-wise, using two panels instead of a Start Menu, and if there is any program to use global keyboard shortcuts in there.
I guess what I'll miss the most will be the xterm, I tried cygwin but it doesn't work as smoothly within windows.

I'll try to install ubuntu in a USB external drive when I have some free time.

I really don't understand why dell can't ship a bloody 10-cent disc for an OS I paid for.
Do you need/want a Windows install CD?
You can create a WIndwos Install CD from the recovery disk/partition
http://www.easydesksoftware.com/recovery.htm

[glyons]

Ohh, that's great, I'll try that. I'll download some imaging software first just in case.

[Kerberos]

You can use Partition Magic or something to shrink the windows partition to leave space. I've only got one XP Home and one Pro cd that I use on everything - you usually have to phone Microsoft to speak to some nice Indian gent as to why your not a pirate, but apart from that I've never had a problem.

Personally I'd just format it and get a XP cd from somewhere - the code at the bottom should be all you need.

[Kurt Dodrill]

pssh, the day i bought my $1500 Dell laptop I formatted that b*tch. there was so much crap on it i didnt need. i reinstalled "my own version" of winxp and dualbooted along with ubuntu. the pc im using now is exclusively running ubuntu. and yeah, there should be a serial on the bottom of the laptop. dont know if it will work though..

[pompeyjohn]

I recently bought a new Dell machine and found myself in the same situation. I was told that there is an xp installation partition, so that should I ever have a problem and need to reinstall XP I just need to boot that.

I explained that I would be doing some Linux testing with the machine and would need to completely wipe the disc - mbr as well - and so would not be able to reinstall XP.

The call centre person I was dealing with spoke to someone else, and after a while they agreed to send out the xp disc and hardware specific driver disks.) The discs arrived recorded delivery a few days later, at no extra cost. I know it is quite fashionable to knock Dell, but my experience of them has been pretty good.

[Sgood1971]

Get AIDA32 (http://www.majorgeeks.com/download181.html) go to "System" then "Summary" and get your Windows key. Finding a CD to install from should be no problem. At least you have your Windows Key. Personally, I would wipe XP out and save the key in case I someday decided to sell it and the potential buyer wanted Windows.

btw, AIDA32 is a standalone program, you do not need to install it.