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Dreakon
January 15th, 2010, 04:08 AM
I've been going the last couple of days trying to decide if I want Ubuntu and if I want to make it the primary O/S on my laptop. It's between it and Windows 7.

On the one hand, I guess Windows 7 is good enough. It runs about as good as Ubuntu and my laptop runs at about the same temperature (if not a little cooler). I enjoy the stability and compatibility of it... I can't play many games on my laptop though, so I dunno. I could probably give up the plethora of Windows games that I can't play. It sucks though that Skype is only a beta on Linux (and god knows how well my webcam and mic will work, had a hard enough time setting those up on Windows) and I won't be able to play Magic the Gathering Online anymore. Skypes an absolutely necessity for when my girlfriend goes off to college... It also kind of sucks that I have a lot of stuff to back up before I do a complete hard drive format for Ubuntu... that alone almost makes staying on Windows worthwhile lol.

However, I love how community oriented Ubuntu is. I absolutely love the interface (I've desperately tried to give Windows a similar two bar interface since XP and Windows 7 ruined that for me lol). I love how customizable it is and how I can have temperature sensors always visible, for example. The detailed clock/date applet, the convenient and compact application, system and folder menu's. I love how tons of handy software is a click away, and how the folks behind Ubuntu and the software make sure that there's a constant, daily stream of fixes and updates coming in. I love how Transmission (the bittorrent client) has a built in IP blocklist updater. The little things. :) It's instability and awkwardness is a turn off though. Things like settings in VLC not saving, Skype crashing, etc.

Bleh... is what I'm giving up worth what I'm getting? And no, if I make the switch to Ubuntu, I want it to end up being permanent and the only O/S on my hard drive, no dual booting lol. ;)

THOUGHTS?! Comments? Should I take the ultimate plunge?!

JDShu
January 15th, 2010, 04:20 AM
If you're dual booting, then yeah take the plunge. Its just a grub change away.

Dreakon
January 15th, 2010, 04:31 AM
If you're dual booting


no dual booting

:( Lol! Dual booting doesn't thrill me, it worked while I was taking Ubuntu for test runs and seeing how much it enticed me (which it clearly did), but apparently dual booting causes more trouble than it's worth for me...

- Taking up valuable hard drive space (I dont want to buy an external hard drive).
- Possible poor performance when running on a smaller seperate partition? Maybe?
- Permission issues, like how I can't seem to delete or alter any files on the Windows partition from Ubuntu... woo hoo!
- OCD and a need for a single O/S and not constantly switching off.

Just a few of the relatively decent sized list of reasons I would like to not dual boot. Consultation and advice, I need it! ;)

pwnst*r
January 15th, 2010, 04:37 AM
virtualbox + windows host

Simian Man
January 15th, 2010, 04:41 AM
virtualbox + windows host

I agree. Then you have Windows for when you need it and Linux for when you want it.

RiceMonster
January 15th, 2010, 04:44 AM
Nothing's stopping you from using both. VM or dual boot. Pick one.


- Permission issues, like how I can't seem to delete or alter any files on the Windows partition from Ubuntu... woo hoo!

Linux can read and write to ntfs easily. How are you mounting your Windows partition?

hoppipolla
January 15th, 2010, 04:49 AM
I dual boot but I next to never actually use Windows 7. I get better performance and more enjoyment out of (k)Ubuntu.

I dunno man, go for what you enjoy using most, and I do believe that a dual boot on the backburner is rarely a bad thing if you can get it to actually work (I couldn't in grub despite all my attempts so have to resort to just changing the boot order in BIOS... which obv only works if you have them on multiple disks).

Yeah, the choice is yours my man ^_^

Dreakon
January 15th, 2010, 04:52 AM
Linux can read and write to ntfs easily. How are you mounting your Windows partition?
I don't know how many different ways there are of mounting partitions. I was doing it the normal way? :P Either way, it wouldn't let me delete non-system files on the windows partition.

RiceMonster
January 15th, 2010, 04:53 AM
I don't know how many different ways there are of mounting partitions. I was doing it the normal way? :P Either way, it wouldn't let me delete non-system files on the windows partition.

Post your /etc/fstab

Dreakon
January 15th, 2010, 05:01 AM
Unfortunately Ubuntu is off my laptop for the time being. If I put it back on, I think it'll be after formatting the hard drive and clearing up the whole thing (Windows included) for it... rather than dealing with partitions and dual booting.

I wasn't aware of VirtualBox, so maybe that'd be a good avenue to go down. I have Windows XP as well, so I could put that on there for a nice, smaller, less bulky Windows solution. I imagine that'll run pretty iffy though, Ubuntu itself is pretty sluggish unless I let the processor run at full speed, but then it has a tendency to get a little too hot for comfort.

Hmmm..... much to think about.

yester64
January 15th, 2010, 05:03 AM
able to play Magic the Gathering Online anymore. Skypes an absolutely necessity for when my girlfriend goes off to college... It also kind of sucks that I have a lot of stuff to back up before I do a complete hard drive format for Ubuntu... that alone almost makes staying on Windows worthwhile lol.


You can consider Gizmo, which got aquired by Google.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gizmo5
http://gizmo5.com/

Personally, i am lucky since i have to not use any of these apps. None of my friend or family uses any of this.
But you can consider this as an alternative.

mamamia88
January 15th, 2010, 06:10 AM
you can't go wrong with either os both are pretty awesome.

megamania
January 20th, 2010, 01:01 PM
I've been going the last couple of days trying to decide if I want Ubuntu and if I want to make it the primary O/S on my laptop. It's between it and Windows 7.

I had an opportunity to test Windows 7 for a while on my dad's computer and I must say I was impressed.

I had a free windows 7 upgrade cd at home, because I bought a laptop on july 2009. However, after 6 years with linux, I got completely used to it and I never feel the need to use Windows.

The "7" cd was collecting dust on my desk, and in the end I decided to sell it on ebay (I like to see it as a sort of Windows Refund) and I'm happy with my decision.

In other words, I don't like windows for several reasons, but I think 7 is good. Both 7 and Ubuntu are good systems, but very different and each with pros and cons.

You'll find yourself cursing at your OS from time to time whatever you choose, but for different reasons.

bigbrovar
January 20th, 2010, 01:35 PM
Take you time to think about it mate. In the end I would advise to use what works for you and makes you happy. I have been windows free now for close to 3 years and I run mostly free software ( with the exclusion of Skype) But that is because that is what am comfortable with and what makes me happy. If you feel its ubuntu you want sure, u can always install windows on virtual-box. and if windows works better for you. By all means use it. There are lots of free and open source software you can use on windows too. Even Mark Shuttle-worth and Jono Beacon use Macs for different things it works for them in. It about your needs and what works for you IMHO.

samh785
January 20th, 2010, 01:57 PM
It sucks though that Skype is only a beta on Linux (and god knows how well my webcam and mic will work, had a hard enough time setting those up on Windows)
I've set up skype on a desktop and a laptop running 9.10 and had zero trouble with it. Compared to the previous version of skype for linux, it's a godsend