Installing Ubuntu on a Dell Computer (XPS 400) that has been modified.

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I was hoping to have a dual-boot computer with XP and ubuntu. I received my disk of 810 ubuntu today and put it in the CD to get my first look and was horrified at the ugly background of the desktop. I was hoping to be able to fool around with ubuntu a little at a time while reading as much as I could about it. I wanted to really learn it while having something I can't be real productive in, while learning. After awhile, when I had become familiar enough, divorce Windows altogether.

I then clicked install and answered the first three or four questions and then the partition manager gave Windows 19 gigs and ubuntu 980 gig's. Boy, ubuntu must be one fat resource hog. I really think it needs to go on one heck of a diet. Talk about bloated -- snicker!

I've tried installing several times today and it kept coming up with the same combination. I really don't know that much about computers but I have set out to do some real intensive research on how to trim some of that fat and give it about 20 gigs to install itself.

[Mark Phelps]

Using the number you reported, if you have a 1TB drive, the only way that Ubuntu is going to grab 900+GB of that is if you use the "use the entire drive" option -- which is NOT what you want if you're going to dual-boot.

Unless you've done this already (didn't notice this in your post), you need to make room on the drive for Ubuntu by shrinking the Windows partition to create unformatted space, and then formatting that as Ext3.

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Mark
I wish to thank you very much for replying to my thread. I am not very computer literate and I am very unfamiliar with partitioning and formatting but I tried to use the first option, and the last option. Most of the tools were grayed out and you was a very limited as to what you could do. It is almost as if it had a mind of its own and it is, its way or no way -- smile.

As far as the drive goes -- -- my hard drive was failing and so I went to new egg to purchase a larger hard drive -- -- (somewhere in the 200 or 250 gig's range). I must have hit the wrong drive on check out because I ended up with a WD 1TB 7200 RPM Sata with 32 MB catch. Sadly it had no cable or anything with it -- just the drive wrapped in bubble wrap. Somehow I waded through, after several attempts and got XP installed. I still haven't put my operas or videos on it, so Windows is still fresh and small.

I tried to use Easuas (free, what can I say, I'm old and cheap) but it looks like I am going to have to break down and buy a good partition manager.

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Sometimes it just pays to get away from something that is giving you problems, or you are giving you problems, such as this case.

I tried installing again and it still took 98% of the drive for ubuntu but I happened to notice something I hadn't seen before and that is a smaller drive picture in the center. I just clicked on it and drug the petition over to the section I had set aside for ubuntu. I now have ubuntu installed exactly where I wanted it in the first place. I have to say that if you stop and think, installing ubuntu is easier than installing Windows. It certainly has come a long way toward easing the installing for dummies like me. Thank you ubuntu team.