Getting Started with Unbuntu/Linux

You ever wanted to abandon Windows and join the bandwagon of the millions that have already installed and are enjoying Linux? Well; me too. Which is why I'm going to share my journey with you and hope you can benefit from it as well. I'm no slouch when it comes to technology. But I have a 'lot' of time and effort invested in the Windows world. Which is why I have had such a hard time moving from Windows to Linux even though I know of a hundred benefits.

It seems that every time that I would move to Linux for a little while, via a Linux LIVE CD or a USB installation, there would be some project that would suck me back into windows. I can't say that I have had a compelling reason to go back to Windows, it really was sort of like being 'sucked' back into it. After being sucked back to it about ten times in a row I've bought a new desktop computer and I purposefully did not buy a copy of Windows to put on it. So now I'm stuck; but stuck by choice. I'm hoping to give myself no option other than sticking it out with Linux.

So what flavor did I go with? There are hundreds of "flavors" that you could choose. And if you have no clue about what all of this stuff is you could spend endless hours, as I have, trying to figure out what flavor of Linux or Unix you should go with. So lets go with simplicity of thought; I've decided to go with Ubuntu. Yes you will get a 'lot' of heated debate from some really purist Linux/Unix users about what I'm advising you of but I think the average Windows users will relate more to what I'm going to say. You the average Windows user, in order to keep your attention, you are going to want to use the easiest Linux distribution available. That phrase "easiest to use" has a lot tied into it. For the move in and of itself isn't going to be one hundred percent easy. Easiest to use for most Windows users means that it is not only the most similar to Windows in the interface, but that it's also the easiest to find the answers to when (notice I did not say "if") you have problems.

I spent many hours trying to poor over a couple of the other finalists when I've tried to make the change previously. And I'll just mention one of those finalists (Fedora) so we can discuss one of the biggest problem that I had and I would like to save you from. As a professional problem solver in the IT field I don't have any better resource to resolve issues than the Internet. I had heard that, from a security and stability perspective (just slightly better), Fedora was the way to go.

So I embarked on this journey knowing that there were going to be hurtles and challenges. I have a great deal of patience and troubleshooting experience. I was fully prepared for everything, that is except for the unexpected misinformation that I was going to run into. You see, in the Linux world Ubuntu is 'so' popular that every time that I did a search for solutions I was getting answers that applied to Ubuntu and did not work in Fedora. Yes they were almost the same solutions but computers don't give you errors like "ok that was close but you really meant to type this didn't you?"

So what I've concluded is that there is already 'enough' of new information that I'm going to need to learn. So I'm going to go with the version that is easiest to find answers to for now, and then if I have a compelling reason to move to another distribution later then I'll be armed with enough Linux experience to do that without it being such a time sucking excavation.

The Low Down

Now that we are done with that lets get to the steps that I suggest to get you up and running as quickly as possible.
1) Go to the Ubuntu Homepage and download (for free) the CD Image then burn it onto CD.
... If you have a slow Internet Connection you might want to order a CD from them.
2) Boot to the CD and choose the "Try Ubuntu" option.
... This does not install Ubuntu yet it simply allows you to take it for a test drive and makes sure your hardware will play well with it.
.. This is also useful if you plan to go computer shopping. If the computer you hope to get will run this CD then it's a good choice.
3) If you like what you saw, boot to the CD again but this time choose install.
... Always make sure you have an installation disk for your previous OS and a backup for all the programs and data that was on your computer previously. Email me if you have any questions here.
4) Ok so you have Ubuntu and installed and you think it looks pretty good. Before you really get going your going to want to consult the update manager.
... This may take hours especially if you have a slow Internet connection.
... If the CD you used to install Ubuntu was outdated, then this could possibly take two or three days.
... Good think you can do other stuff while you wait for this :-)
5) Lastly to really get all of the cool programs that will make your life easier, check out the steps of this  great article that I followed on this subject already.
... Just in case this article ever disappears I will try add a TechSupportTV entry of these steps.


Ok so what thought would I like to end this article with? ... Hmm; "Would Jesus use Linux?" :-)