ubuntu8.11

[Johnny Rosenberg]

2009/1/14 Keith <menziesk at telus.net>

>  Hopefully I will become a newcomer to the world of Linux,namely, Ubuntu
> 8.11
>
> I have downloaded the software to a CD ( I think you call this an ISO). I
> booted from the CD, no problem....great. I like what I saw.
> Rather than partition my harddrive ( I'm using XP Professional) I would
> like to install a programme called VirtualBox, why I'm not sure.
> This where I need some Advice:
>
> 1. Dual boot , does this mean I can flip between Windows and Linux at will
> without rebooting my computer.... or am I being very naive.
>
> 2. When I start my computer up, I presume it will give me the choice of
> which programme to initially boot up
>
> 3. If, at startup I do nothing, which programme will automatically startup.
>
> 4. I would like the default startup to be Windows until I am comfortable
> with Ubuntu...if not can it be changed to Windows( remember I'm no rocket
> scientist)
>
You can edit the file /boot/grub/menu.lst if you like. In a virtual console,
type:
cd /boot/grub/
(this will take you to the /boot/grub folder)
sudo cp menu.lst menu.lst.old
(This makes a backup of the file menu.lst. You need to enter your password
for this)
gksudo gedit menu.lst
(This opens the file menu.lst with the text editor gedit as root, or
administrator if you prefer that word)
Now you edit the file. The first part (with its first line starting with
"title     something") is the default operating system. Make sure the one
you want as default comes before the other ones in the text. You can use
Ctrl+x to cut the text out and Ctrl+v to paste the text at another place.
If you think you have too many choices, you can "comment out" sections. To
do that, just make sure every line of the section starts with a "#". That
makes the lines inactive.
If you feel that you don't know what you're doing here, even after studying
the menu.lst file, let someone more experienced do it for you. If you do it
anyway, and it all fails, you need to get your old copy back. Then I guess
you'll need a live CD, then copy the old file back from a virtual terminal
from there:
sudo cp menu.lst.old meny.lst
Then restart the computer without the CD/DVD.
Maybe there is a way to do all this with a GUI, I don't know.
J.R.


>
>
> 5. And so can I change the startup once I gain confidence using Ubuntu, I
> guess number 3 above answers this question
>
> Thank you for your patience
>
> Keith
>
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