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thinking of switching OS

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Ozymandias:
By the way Thanks for the partitioning ideas (mainly voidmain's suggestion). I can use that scheme so that i can still run my windows programs while im waiting for Lindows!

lu666s:
I think that people have too much of expectations of Lindows. It would run initially only office type of apps. You may wait quite a while to see a support for all your apps you use on regular basis, if ever.

There is another solution in the interim, before we see more ports to Linux.

Actually two, but I have experience with one only, so I can't vouch for anything beyond what I know.

VMWare. It run on the top of linux desktop, creating a virtual machine (e.g. virtual window). Some precautionary notes. You need at least 256mb RAM and a decent video card (32 mb). Then it runs quite well, provided that you do not insist on candys like animated menus and transparencies.

The doze window is full screen expandable (in fact, I recommend that). You just install it and run like you would windoze if it were the only system on the box, yet you can switch between and even do some rudimentary copy and paste.

There are some strings attached, it is not cheap ($199). To outweigh that, you can have several VM's on the box if your RAM is more generous. Practically any supported OS, from all doze versions to another Linux, FreBSD, and even some exotic *nixes. Which means that once you throw away your old doze shoes or even before you say adieu to it, you can use the program to run OS' or distros that interest you, betas, whatnot, without worries how it affects your current configuration.

Addendum: VMWare creates virual disk images (something like ISO, or compressed hd track) that does not affect the underlying OS -- except you need enough space which is not a problem in this age of cheapo 10's G HD's. Just an observation, w2k seems to run faster under vmware than in its native configuration. Probably does not crash as much either, but then I did not have it on all the time, I just fired it up when I needed it. And last but not least, making a backup means copying the disk images. That translates into a full system backup, a virtual clone, and it beats any other method timewise.

[ February 07, 2002: Message edited by: lu666s ]

Ozymandias:
Since part of the reason i spend hours upon hours on my computer is to get my fix of high speed gaming, piggy-backing (so to speak) multiple OS's isnt a good choice.. Sure seperate OS's dont slow each other down very much, but windows doesnt 'like' to work with anything but windows.. I personally have the opinion that the more simple i keep my computer (less clutter, Kind of like an apartment) ,the faster it performs. Simulations of windows in other OS's eat up alot of memory and processor time. What would be the point of having linux for example and windows on the same hard drive (I have seprate hard drives for each) when windows by itself would run my programs faster.. I'm not sayin that i like it but if i want to run most of my games (with a few exeptions) then i have to do it through the instability and inefficiancy of windows. I guess that the idea of a combination is what i've dreamed of for a while now so in that i may be over-estimating Lindows i would have to agree.

Calum:
From what i am reading on this forum, you can run a VMWARE virtual machine as a program using your Linux OS, and have Windows installed on that. Many of the people here are saying that Windows runs MORE STABLY and is LESS LIKELY TO CRASH when run in such a way!

It seems then, that from your clutter point of view, you may want to consider doing just that, when you get yr copy of Linux installed, then see how Windows runs in VMWARE, and if you think it's good enough for your uses, you are free to delete the windows OS entirely from your machine, freeing up some space, keeping it simple, and making your windows installation more stable in the process!

I know it may seem to you like Windows can't possibly run more stably on another OS than it does on its own, but i gather there are many reasons why it does in fact run better as a Linux program rather than a seperate OS in its own right. The first of these is that Linux uses the ext2 and ext3 filesystem structures, which are much more stable than FAT, FAT32, or even the slightly more robust NTFS.

I am no Linux expert, so over to the real dudes now, to hear if anyone can back me up, say something i haven't thought of, or tell me i'm talking through my arse...

voidmain:
Calum, you got most of it right but I just need to clarify a couple of things.  When you run Windows under VMware you are not running Windows as a Linux program.  Windows is running natively on it own hardware (but that hardware is virtual).  When you start up a VMware session you click the power button just like you would on a real computer.  You will see the BIOS screen pop up, count up the memory just like you do on a real computer.  You can press a key and go into the BIOS and set it up just like a real computer etc.  If you have the Windows CD in the drive it will boot windows, where Windows will detect all of your hardware (it just happens to be virtual hardware but Windows doesn't know that).  It will detect it's own hard drive which is configured like any other hard drive when installing windows and be formatted FAT or FAT32 (it's a virtual hard drive but Windows doesn't know that).  Windows has *no* idea that there is another operating system running. It thinks it has the machine all to itself.

Now the reason Windows can run more stably is because no matter whose machine you run this on, or what the real hardware is, it will always be the same basic hardware for WIndows running in VMware.  For instance, it will detect an AMD network card not matter what type of network card you are really running.  So it will use the same hardware drivers on every persons installation of VMware.  Now you can make SCSI or IDE virtual hard drives available and when you plug your favorite USB device in you may have to install the Windows drivers just like you would any other time so it's still Windows.

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