Few installation questions from a newcomer

[1gnition]

Hello!

I'm going to install Kubuntu on an Intel Core 2 Duo and here are some questions:

1. Can the installation force me to re-partition my hard drive? (I'm using NTFS right now).

2. If it can, is there any way to avoid it?

3. I want to format the partition upon which Kubuntu will be installed. Is there an
option in the installation process to do it, or should I do it manually before the
installation? I also want to get rid of my currently installed WinXP.

4.a. Can OpenOffice (or whatever documents software Kubuntu uses) generate .DOC
files that are compatible with MS Word? In other words, can people that use Word
see the documents nicely?

4.b. What about Mathematic formulae? Is there an analoguos plugin for OpenOffice
(Something like Equation Editor, MathType etc.)?

5. Suppose I choose partition C: for Kubuntu installation. Will the other partitions be
safe during the installation process?

P.S. I already posted this message in the Ubuntu forums because I didn't know there was a separate forum for Kubuntu, sorry.

Thanks!

[ultrageeky]

Re: Few installation questions from a newcomer

I can help with some of those questions,

1,2 and 3 (and some of 5)

You'll be presented with a set of installation options: one will be to allow the installer to create its own partitions on your main drive and install Kubuntu to them (Linux uses two partitions - one for the operating system (OS) and user data storage, the other is a swap drive (virtual RAM/paging file as it's called in Windows); the second option allows you to install Kubuntu using the whole drive (destroys all data currently on the drive - not what you want to do); and the third option allows you to create/set partitions onto which to install Kubuntu. Allowing the installer to create its own partitions will probably be your easiest option, it wont destroy currently stored data and will resize any current partitions to make room for the installer's created ones (there is a slider (barely visible vertical black line on the right hand side of the second blue bar), use it to specify the amount of your hard disk you want Kubuntu to use. The installation will reformat the partitions it creates to ext3.

I notice you said you want to get rid of WinXP, you can easily remove your WinXP partition after the installation's completed using Gparted. You could even remove it before you start an installation by running the Live Disk (try it without installation), install Gparted (Main Menu/Applications/System Tools/KPackage Manager) then run it (Main Menu/Applications/System Tools/Partition Manager) and use it to edit/remove your XP partition. Jut be sure it is the XP partition your removing and not another (I'm assuming you have others for data storage).

If you have another operating system and wish to duel boot with Linux then ensure you check for compatibility issues first.

4,

OpenOffice can save documents in the .doc (word) format as well as the open document format and many others that word can display. You could check it suits your needs by running the Live Disk, opening OpenOffice's word processor package, typing a document and saving it to disk in .doc format then opening it in Word. To access your hard drive/s whilst using the live disk open a terminal and type sudo mount -a (press enter) then sudo dolphin (press enter). There are many extremely good tools that will allow you to use mathematical expressions in calculations; some are plugins for the Open Office suit and others are self contained programs - if you can do it in MS Office then you can do it in OpenOffice.

5, Your other partitions should be safe. There's never a 100% safe method of resizing partitions so before starting the installation process back-up any data you don't want to risk losing.

Use the Live Disk (Try without installing) to test Kubuntu suits your needs. Explore the package manager (Main Menu/Applications/System Tools/KPackage Manager) to get an idea of the scope of software available. More repositories (software libraries) can be added to the installed version; the more repos, the more software you have. After installation you'll want to add the Medibuntu repository and install VLC so that you have all the multimedia codecs required by modern users.

Were I you, I'd first try Kubuntu using the Live Disk, if I liked it (which I do - I love i) then I'd use Gparted to remove the WinXP partition (will require a restart for the changes to take effect), then I'd use the Live Disk to install Kubuntu (allowing Kubuntu to auto-create its partitions (but I'd allocate space to Kubuntu using the barely visible slider - see top answer). I wouldn't have a printer or scanner attached to the computer during installation (can be problematic for all operating system installations (esp, Windows)).

Remember to back up data before beginning the installation.

[1gnition]

Re: Few installation questions from a newcomer

Thanks very much for the detailed answer.
Can the partitions that won't be used by Kubuntu remain NTFS?

[quarkslot]

Re: Few installation questions from a newcomer

Thanks very much for the detailed answer.
Can the partitions that won't be used by Kubuntu remain NTFS?

Short answer - Yes. In addition Kubuntu comes with NTFS read/write support so you will be still able to access the files on your NTFS drives.

Just to add to what ultrageeky said:

- I would recommend you manually partition your drive so that you have a minimum of 3 partitions:
1. Root (/) for the OS
2. Swap
3. Home (/home) for your data
This means that in the future you can re-install of the OS without touching your data, it's fantastic . Look at point #5 on dibl's Top 20 faq for more info: http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3099811.0 (I'm sure he won't mind me pointing you his faq).

- I use OpenOffice to edit MS Office documents so I can't see there will be an issue with what you ask, install OO on your XP system and try it out there first.

- OO has an equivalent to Equation Editor (Math Object editor) but I don't know anything about it, you can probably Google it to learn more.

- I also got rid of XP however many of my clients use XP or Vista so I use VirtualBox to run the Windows OS'es inside Kubuntu if necessary, works a treat, but you will need your original installation disks etc.

Good luck, I'm sure you'll like what you find, I'm using Kubuntu on a Core 2 Duo system and it runs great.

[ultrageeky]

Re: Few installation questions from a newcomer

1gnition, You're welcome.

Was just about to post an answer to your NTFS question but Quarkslot posted whilst I was typing an answer.

[1gnition]

Re: Few installation questions from a newcomer

Thanks guys!