New life for old XP

Horizon170 wrote:

thgoodman wrote:

powderman426 wrote:
Or you could load Linux for free and enjoy real computing.

First, let me state my bias. I have one PC running Windows XP and one PC running Linux. I love the Linux OS, mainly because it is so much faster than Windows. That said, I do not recommend a Linux install for the technically faint-of-heart.

You need to understand that Linux is almost like a religion to those who support it. Ask a question of a Linux guru and it will be answered fully and with fervor. Ask if its difficult to install and they will tell you "no problem", "piece of cake", etc. Mine took about 15min to install the operation system and all day to install all the drivers and other support apps. Also, some hardware is not supported, the existing wifi card in my case.

I am very happy with my Linux install. It runs very fast on a very old laptop and doesn't get viruses or other mal-ware. I installed mine by attending a Linux user group "install fest" here in Phoenix. If you can find a user group near you, you may want to explore Linux. If there is no user group near by, I'd recommend giving it a pass. Some people are just meant to be Windows users.

I will eventually migrate to a newer version of windows but there will be drag marks in the sand behind me.

Nice read-------------I would like to try Linux on an old laptop that has a faulty CD /DVR drive. Where do I get information as to how this is done?

If your old laptop can boot from a usb drive then you can download linux (I recommend Ubuntu) to the usb drive and boot from that.

If the laptop can not boot from a usb drive the you will want to try the Ubuntu windows installer from the url below. Note that this will install in a dual boot mode and only an older version of Ubuntu. Chose the 12.04 LTS (Long Term Support) version and you will be able to update to the new LTS version due to be released later this month.

http://www.ubuntu.com/desktop/get-ubuntu/windows-installer