HOW TO LEARN LINUX IN WINDOWS

[Chem_1]

Im interested to learn Linux actually i am having Windows 7 64 bit laptop.I am not interested in dual boot,Some of my friends suggested me to download Oracle virtual box.Tell me the process to the Oracle virtual box with linux.Which linux version is preferable for beginners??

[mike_2000_17]

Using VirtualBox is definitely a great option for you, given the needs you have expressed. There are plenty of easy to follow tutorials out there about how to go about creating one of those. For example, this one seems easy enough to follow.

For beginners, the preferred Linux distribution is probably Ubuntu (or maybe Kubuntu). There are many distributions, and most are easy to use, like for example Linux Mint (more like Windows 7) or ElementaryOS (more like Mac OSX). The nice thing with using VirtualBox is that you can pretty easily test out different distributions until you find the one that suits you the best. For most distributions, the install process is about as easy as with Ubuntu, which is about as hard as installing any Windows application (just answer some basic questions and hit next a bunch of times), especially when installing into a VirtualBox. It's only when you set a dual-boot that things can get a little bit tricky (but not too hard either, you just have to be careful, follow instructions, and understand what you're doing).

The only slight issue with VirtualBox is that it can be quite a bit slower than if it was running "natively", which is why you would normally move on to a dual-boot setup if you use Linux more intensively (e.g., like I only use Windows on very rare occasions, for special purposes).

[Chem_1]

For to run and develop cheminformatics softwares.Today i had sent a mail to a reputed company about linux version their using then they mentioned about requirements. -RHEL 6.4 or higher 6.x -CentOS 6.4 or higher 6.x -SUSE SLES 11 SP3, SLED 11 SP3, OpenSUSE 13.1 -Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, 12.04 LTS, 14.04 LTS.Even in their company Job application also they mentioned that the person must have *Good knowledge on Linux installation and Linux operating system.So i decided to learn about it.

[Chem_1]

Is Putty software useful for beginners of linux ? Users what do you say PUTTY SOFTWARE or VIRTUAL MACHINE?

[mike_2000_17]

Putty has little to do with Linux. Putty is a Windows software that allows you to use Unix shell protocols and environments. It is especially useful to connect, remotely, to a Unix-like server through a protocol like SSH (Secure Shell). I don't see how it could be useful for a beginner to learn Linux, because (1) you need access to a Linux server, and (2) you only get command-line (or terminal) access to that server, which is not something beginners should dive into that quickly. Putty is more useful for a person who is well-versed in Linux (or Unix-like systems) and is stuck having to deal with a Windows computer (like, for example, a system administrator who needs to do some things on the company's Linux server from an employee's Windows workstation computer). Putty is not an option for learning Linux.

To get a Linux-like (or Unix-like) terminal or command-line environment installed on Windows, you can use Cygwin (which is one of the first software I install on any new Windows computer).

To get Linux and try it out, there are really only three options: use a virtual machine (like VirtualBox), boot into a bootable USB device (that you can easily create from a distro image), or setup a dual-boot (which is a bit more tricky and permanent).

[Chem_1]

Ok mike tell me which ubuntu version shall i go along with virtual machine?

[gyno]

you are indeed a great tutor, mike, with this your aprroach in breaking things down,that even a new person to computer system can understand.
So, like Chem 1 am new to Linux as well and have been thinking on how to get it installed, the guestions i need you to give are;
can i use an old desktop pc running window xp and install a Linux Distro to get me started,will the hardware components of such pc be good enough to get me going with no hitch(cos the pc itself is like 10yrs old),then if am able to download any Linux Distro online using my window vista,will i be able to burn that onto a cd/dvd in windows os,such that i will be able to use the cd to run the distro on that desktop i intend using,cos window is the OS dominating my area here,so it's hard to see an outlet to buy Linux OS.
Then what is the basic hardware spec to run a Linux Distro. Are Linux OS compartible with common hardware components we see around that windows OS run on?

[mike_2000_17]

tell me which ubuntu version shall i go along with virtual machine?

The latest LTS version is probably the best place to start, that is, version 14.04.

can i use an old desktop pc running window xp and install a Linux Distro to get me started

Yes, that's a very common thing to do, and I often recommend that as a way to give a second life to an older PC.

will the hardware components of such pc be good enough to get me going with no hitch

Yes. Linux tends to have much lower requirements on the PC, and as far as drivers are concerned, older hardware is usually well-supported (it's cutting edge hardware that can cause some troubles).

then if am able to download any Linux Distro online using my window vista,will i be able to burn that onto a cd/dvd in windows os,such that i will be able to use the cd to run the distro on that desktop i intend using

Yes, you can certainly do that. There are several installation guides depending on what you want to do.

Then what is the basic hardware spec to run a Linux Distro.

Basic requirement for Linux is generally much lower than for Windows. However, for much older hardware, you might have trouble running the latest versions of the distros, so you might have to consider using an older version (with lower requirements) or using a light-weight distro (like Lubuntu).

Are Linux OS compartible with common hardware components we see around that windows OS run on?

Yes. Linux OS's support all hardware that Windows supports, and in fact, Linux supports a much larger set of hardware than Windows (from small embedded systems to large server rack computer hardware). It's only when you get hardware that was released in the last 6 months that you have to worry that Linux might not support it yet, but that's very rare. For old hardware, there is no trouble.

[Chem_1]

Hai mike i had downloaded ubuntu 12.10 version i got zip file.Where will the ISO file present?I had already downloaded virtual box.But i could not able upload iso file,Because i couldnot find it.

[Gribouillis]

http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop

[rubberman]

As usual, Mike2K gives great advice. My only comment is about the performance issue, though there WILL be some impact. There are several things you can do to improve the performance of a VirtualBox virtual machine. Some of these are as follows (experiment to find out what works best on your system):

1. If your system is 64-bit, then install the 64-bit version of linux that you want to use.
2. Enable the VT-x (Intel) or AMD-V (AMD) extensions in the BIOS. Which depends upon your processor.
3. Allocate 1/2 of the number of real cores (not virtual hyperthreaded ones) that your system has to the VM.
4. Allocate at least 2GB of RAM to the VM.
5. Assuming you are using a GUI, allocate the maximum memory to the virtual video card (128MB currently).
6. Make sure you download and install the extension pack. That will enable you to use your USB devices and some other stuff in the VM.
7. After you install and boot the new OS, install the "Guest Additions" on the virtual machine. That will provide significant enhancements such as full-screen video, shared folders with the host, and more (see the VirtualBox documentation for a full list of enhancements).

When configured correctly, I can even run full-screen video (1920x1200) on a 24" HD display in a virtual machine with little or no "stutter", so performance is not necessarily an issue (conditions may vary, depending upon your video card and whether or not you have 2D/3D extensions enabled). That said, I wouldn't use it to run full-screen first-person shooter video games... :-)