SabrinaSouza asked the forum how to install Linux onto a PC without losing Windows. You can pick from many versions of Linux, but I'll confine my instructions here to. It's popular, it's powerful, and it plays well with Windows. There are other versions that I'll recommend for specific jobs (such as ), but for learning Linux and possibly using it for productive work, Ubuntu is the best choice I know. You download Ubuntu in the form of an.iso file, which is an image file of a CD--in this case a bootable one. Double-click the file, and a program will likely come up and walk you through the process of burning the disc.

Aug 3, 2017 - Choose and download a Linux distro. The Cinnamon desktop environment running on Linux Mint 18.2. Fedora's Media Writer utility is a thing of beauty and can run on Windows or Mac OS. You can use VirtualBox to test different Linux distros while running Windows or Linux. Aug 23, 2018  Windows 95 is now an app you can download and install on macOS, Windows, and Linux. Today, someone has gone a step further and made Windows 95 into an app that you can run on macOS, Windows.

If no such program pops up, download and install the, then try again. Another option: Use the to create a bootable flash drive out of that same.iso file. Formatting western digital my passport ultra for mac. I actually prefer the flash drive; it's faster. So what can you do with this CD or flash drive? Plenty, but I'll give you three options: Just Boot It Ubuntu is a live version of Linux. You don't have to install it. You can simply boot it from the CD or flash drive, and, when asked, say you want to run rather than install Ubuntu.

This works for getting a feel for the operating system, but not for actual work. For instance, the contents of Ubuntu's Document folder disappears when you reboot.

Install Ubuntu Within Windows You can actually install Ubuntu as a Windows program, although you can't launch it as one. Insert the CD or flash drive. If nothing starts up automatically, open the drive in Windows Explorer and run wubi.exe. Select the option Install inside Windows, and follow the prompts.

When you reboot after the install, your PC will boot Linux and start setting it up. This can take a long time--especially if you're using a CD.

The next time you boot, and with every boot afterwards, you'll get to pick between Windows and Ubuntu. And you can uninstall Ubuntu like any other Windows program.

Install Ubuntu in a Virtual Machine You can run both OSes simultaneously by installing Ubuntu inside a virtual machine (VM). In a VM, software imitates hardware so that you effectively run one computer inside another. I can recommend two free VM programs:. Ubuntu installs just fine in either of them. VirtualBox is more powerful, but I find VMware Player easier for the virtual machine novice.

(Yes, I know that I recommended VirtualBox just last week, but that was for a Windows 8-specific job.) By the way, you don't actually need to burn a CD or prepare a flash drive to install Ubuntu inside a virtual machine. Both VMware Player and Oracle VM VirtualBox can install directly from the.iso file. Read the original. Contributing Editor writes about technology and cinema. Email your tech questions to him at, or post them to a community of helpful folks on the. Follow Lincoln on, or subscribe to the, e-mailed weekly.