The Linux Distro Thread (maybe)

[ej-solutions]

Thought I'd start this one off, rather than continue on another thread.

As a quick catch up for others:

Have a look at Unetbootin, as a means to try out different versions of Linux, without producing numerous coasters (unwanted CDs).
I haven't tried the method of installing to hard drive, only the USB flash drive method (so far).

---

Just skimming the surface

Opinions/guidance expressed are intended to benefit the reader (mostly) but no responsibility should be assumed for the accuracy and no warranty is implied/expressed or given - so eBay may pull this post

[otherego]

I saw something about a version of Mint that has bootin' built in - might that have been something like MintForWin? I know at some stage there was something akin to Wubi, which essentially allowed Ubuntu to be installed within Windows. I've not tried it - to be honest, it seems a little pointless other than as a simpler (perhaps) way of trying Linux out.

If it can be installed/uninstalled like any other Windows program (even though one has to choose between the two at boot, via the Windows boot manager rather than GRUB), presumably Ubuntu/Mint used in this manner could be mugged by problems within the Windows system.

I may, of course, be talking complete tosh. Again.

Unetbootin has its little tantrums occasionally, but I find it is mostly stable and easy to use. (Now watch it fall over next time I use it.)

[*scyllabub*]

I used to have the Linux-within-Windows, and a dual-boot.  This time I thought I saw a Linux (Mint?) USB-installation that would auto-boot 🙂

[*scyllabub*]

Please help me clarifiy the process for installing Mint 17 from a USB stick - I can't remember anything about that last couple of times I did it years ago.

=======================

I wish to prepare a bootable USB Mint stick on a Windows 7 laptop that is not going to be the recipient of Mint, that will be my MSI U100 clone, into which I want to plug the USB stick and it will install Mint, no messing!

What format should the USB stick be?

I've downloaded Unetbootin and Mint 17 Cinnamon to my Win7 hard drive.

I've seen it said "burn Mint to a DVD or USB stick"... couldn't I just copy it (rather than burn it) to the USB stick?

What order do I do things in?

========================

You wouldn't believe the number of corrections I've had to make to the above - but I must get this done, even if it means causing pain to my dear e-pals here.

[grumpy-cook]

It's very simly explained here Scylla - http://www.pendrivelinux.com/using-unetbootin-to-create-a-live-usb-linux/

[*scyllabub*]

That was very clear, thank you Grumps.

Except they don't say (that I can see) what format the USB drive has to be.  Mine is a 64gb NTFS, so I formatted it keeping the same.  I've also formatted another USB drive exFAT and put Mint on that.

Can't boot, I think it's to do with an existing problem that's not Linux-related so I'll post it separately.  I had hoped that a the Mint USB would have everything required on it.

[grumpy-cook]

I've seen advice to format it with a single FAT32 partition.

[otherego]

Yep, that's caught me a couple of times - Unetbootin expects F32.

Worth remembering that it will also wipe any data on the flash drive. Even allowing for the inevitable bloat of modern distros, 64GB is serious overkill. 2GB flash drives still work fine for Mint - you just have to remember to format the smaller capacity drives to F32, which doesn't seem to be the way they're sold (F16 or something out of the box.)

[*scyllabub*]

Oh thanks, OE - I just used drives that were empty, my small ones seem to have clutter on them 😞  I'll try that now but see my new post 😮  (if you fancy 😉 ).

[*scyllabub*]

Lord knows what I've driven off that 4gb flash drive with a Fat32 format , but here I am on my Mint netbook  

[*scyllabub*]

I'm going OK but it is a bit slow, eg at opening some things.

URGENT tasks to be achieved:

DISABLE TOUCHPAD !!!  (I'm looking for a spare credit card to tape over it, otherwise it'll be a bit of cardboard... scruffy!)

SET SHIFT KEY to RELEASE CAPS LOCK (because I still type like I learnt on a manual typewriter).

============

Have discovered to my amazement that I joined Mint forum in March 2008

[*scyllabub*]

I've found more settings now and have 'done' the touchpad - but cannot fathom the CAPS LOCK options at all - have tried several that mention the Shift key "pausing" Caps Lock and they make no difference 😕

I am extremely grumpy.

[otherego]

Eeek - I'm really not that old, but I'd forgotten all about the shift key to apply caps lock or to release it on manual typewriters. That momentary hesitation then the thunk of all the keys flopping back down to the lower case position... (Quick aside - I'm kicking myself for not grabbing a nice little portable typewriter from the local charity shop recently - 20 quid. Trouble is, I've never been much of  a typist - and by the time I'd stopped wondering whether Tippex was still available, somebody else had grabbed it.)

I suspect that most of the people who program modern distros have probably never used a manual typewriter - and it's not a setting many would use on a computer, presumably.

Sorry I can't help - I'd never even thought of being able to disengage caps lock with the Shift key. Do hope you sort it out before the grumpiness becomes too extreme, Scy.

[*scyllabub*]

---

@otherego wrote:

(1) by the time I'd stopped wondering whether Tippex was still available, somebody else had grabbed it.)

(2) I suspect that most of the people who program modern distros have probably never used a manual typewriter - and it's not a setting many would use on a computer, presumably.

---

(1) No problem getting Tippex, but, crucially, the Thinners were taken off the market years ago when they became the drug of choice for sniffers on council estates.  I could make a bottle of Tippex (has it still got a hyphen in it somewhere?) last a month without clogging and my invisible mending was second to none 😉

(2) So easy in Windows, once you find it buried in Region & Language:

==========

Back to Mint 17 - I think I'm going to be disappointed if I expected it to be significantly faster than XP on this netbook, and I did.

Did I choose the wrong distro for such a 'weak' machine?  Any suggestions?  No rush, I'll see how this goes, just for browsing in the heat of the night.

[grumpy-cook]

Scylla, have you actually installed Mint or are you running it from the USB drive? The latter would be slow.

I recently converted one of my laptops to Peppermint and I'm very impressed. This laptop is only a Celeron with 3Gb and it runs like a train.

http://peppermintos.com/

[*scyllabub*]

Yes, Mint is installed.  Off I go to investigate Peppermint, thank you Grumps

(My CPU is only 1MHz and RAM 2GB, the max possible.

[*scyllabub*]

Being a shallow soul, I am struck by the quality and style of writing in Peppermint's user guide.

[*scyllabub*]

No luck installing Peppermint - selected language OK but on the next screen, wifi, I couldn't type anything, in fact froze and I couldn't even get a response from Quit button so powered off.

Am now back in undamaged Mint, will try again.

[grumpy-cook]

My install was uneventful and quite slick. But all computers are different I guess. I'm surprised you are having trouble though because, like Mint, Peppermint is Ubuntu based (Lubuntu I think), so it should not be too different.

[*scyllabub*]

I've redownloaded and checked the md5sum (? or was that the program I checked the long number with ?), and will have another go 🙂  There's no rush.

The CapsLock/Shift is a problem though - I'm sure there must be a way to alter the keys' behaviour.

[0-anthony-0]

Menu > Control Centre > Keyboard (Preferences) > Layout > Options > Caps lock key behaviour.

You might find what you're looking for there or thereabouts. I'm not fully conversant with what you're trying to achieve