Maybe I should do the memory test?



    • Default
    • Help
    • Try Ubuntu without installing
    • Install Ubuntu
    • Check disc for defects
    • Test memory
    • Boot from first hard disk
    • Try Ubuntu without installing
    • Install Ubuntu
    • OEM install (for manufacturers)
    • Check disc for defects


  • UNetbootin? LOLWHAT?



  • Just trying it out.



  • I usually use UUI, I think? Haven't put Linux on a USB drive in quite some time, though.

    I think I had issues getting UNetBootIn to work, like, at all, actually.


  • Notification Spam Recipient

    You failed to Poll. Here you go, for licks and wiggles!

    [poll]

    • Default
    • Help
    • Try Ubuntu without installing
    • Install Ubuntu
    • Check disc for defects
    • Test memory
    • Boot from first hard disk
    • Try Ubuntu without installing (For dummies)
    • Install Ubuntu (The right way)
    • OEM install (for manufacturers)
    • Check disc for defects (again)
    • E_DEVICE_NOT_FOUND
    • 👋
      [/poll]

  • Dupa

    It always does that shite. Still, it's the best way to try a distro out without a flash drive and DVD.

    Honestly, I haven't even noticed that, always focused on first three options. 😄

    So, how do you like Ubuntu (15.10, I presume)?



  • How about:

    [poll]

    • Default
    • Help
    • Try Discourse without installing
    • Install Discourse
    • Check Discourse for defects
    • Test memory
    • Boot from first hard dick
    • Try Discourse without installing (For dummiesJeff)
    • Install Discourse (The right way)
    • OEM install (for manufacturers)
    • Check Discourse for defects (again)
    • E_DEVICE_NOT_FOUND
    • 👋
      [/poll]

  • Java Dev

    @rc4 said:

    - Install Discourse (The right way)

    That would be in a trashcan?



  • @kt_ said:

    So, how do you like Ubuntu (15.10, I presume)?

    I have three computers.

    Computer A has an AMD Radeon 7660G, for which Ubuntu boots to a black screen. Using the nomodeset boot option I get this error before it boots to a black screen again.

    Computer B has such a horribly slow processor that the desktop environment doesn't even render properly (no bar at the top or left, no title bars on windows, trying to run firefox gives all sorts of errors about some 0MB pagefile).

    Computer C is brand new. I don't plan to install Ubuntu on it or dual boot (the solid state drive is only 128GB and I don't have a spare external hard drive to install onto), so I just set up a Hyper-V virtual machine and a VirtualBox virtual machine and that's been the most successful experience I have had with a linux distribution ever. (It took me a while to figure out how to switch between the Hyper-V hypervisor and the VirtualBox hypervisor - hardware virtualization support really helps a lot). I haven't tried booting directly from the live USB yet, but I'll consider it the next time I turn off my computer.

    Thankfully I have not ruined any computers, I used the try-without-installing option to make sure things would work.

    As for my opinions on Ubuntu, I guess I'm just not a fan of Unity. I also haven't spent much time with it yet. Also, trying to sudo apt-get install git-all fails and sends me to an existing crash report X) I also tried running one of my graphical projects in it but got OpenGL errors due to VirtualBox having poor OpenGL virtualization - I'll have to try Hyper-V later.



  • How slow is horribly slow? For newish desktop Linuxes you'll need at least a 1GHz processor and no less than 1GB of RAM.



  • Why wouldn't you just drop the image straight onto the stick with dd?



  • @gordonjcp said:

    How slow is horribly slow?

    Just running Windows maxes out the CPU. The particular processor has a very bad reputation online, I don't remember it off the top of my head.

    @gordonjcp said:

    Why wouldn't you just drop the image straight onto the stick with dd?
    Because I'm on Windows and I just wanted to see what unetbootin did out of curiosity? Obviously I would put the ISO on the USB directly but I was just curious about why unetbootin existed. I'm still pretty new to this stuff (I don't get out much). Also, I should mention I have no idea what I am doing :) all my *nix experience so far has been via virtual machines.

    To be honest I don't know why it has taken me so long to try *nix. Maybe just because I've always been worried about hardware compatibility, which seems to have been the case for computers A and B. I'm perfectly happy sticking to Windows which works for pretty much everything I need to do.



  • That's perfectly normal when you use UNetbootin.

    It makes its own syslinux menu by combining all options it can find or something. Obviously it's not very good at filtering duplicates, but the first option always works so who cares about the rest.



  • @rc4 said:

    Check Discourse for defects

    *selects option*

    "You are now banned from meta.discourse.org"



  • Ah, unetbootin is handy if you've got non-hybrid images (ie. they have to be burned to a CD) in that it'll unpick them and turn them into something that can be booted off USB - although wouldn't it be nice if things were smart enough to go "hm, this looks like a bare bootblock with no partition, it's probably El Torito, let's try it and fall back to treating it like a hard disk if that fails".

    it also generates a profoundly ugly boot menu that doesn't always work properly.


  • Discourse touched me in a no-no place

    @LB_ said:

    (It took me a while to figure out how to switch between the Hyper-V hypervisor and the VirtualBox hypervisor - hardware virtualization support really helps a lot)

    Do Hyper-V and VirtualBox play nicely together now?
    I prefer VirtualBox anyway for non-server use, but Hyper-V got removed when it stopped VirtualBox from working properly.


  • Discourse touched me in a no-no place

    @LB_ said:

    As for my opinions on Ubuntu, I guess I'm just not a fan of Unity

    I used to use Xubuntu to avoid Unity until I discovered Mint.



  • @loopback0 said:

    Do Hyper-V and VirtualBox play nicely together now?I prefer VirtualBox anyway for non-server use, but Hyper-V got removed when it stopped VirtualBox from working properly.

    The issue is that there can only be one hypervisor active at once, and Hyper-V's wins over VirtualBox's. All you have to do to get VirtualBox's working is disable Hyper-V's and restart:

    bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype off
    

    Then when you want to use Hyper-V again, just enable it and restart:

    bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto
    

    Restarting your computer is currently the easiest way to do it. It would be nice if more than one hypervisor could be active at once or if they could be swapped out without restarting, but from what I can tell searching the internet that isn't a thing yet.

    Also, wtf discourse, why is the syntax highlighting different?


  • BINNED

    Mint is fine, even better though is Cinnamon on Fedora.


  • Dupa

    @LB_ said:

    As for my opinions on Ubuntu, I guess I'm just not a fan of Unity.

    Yeah, gotcha. I think that Kubuntu or Ubuntu GNOME is a much better choice. You could also try elementary. It uses 14.04 as a base and is a really nice choice.

    @LB_ said:

    Also, trying to sudo apt-get install git-all fails and sends me to an existing crash report X)

    Yeah, that's why I try to jump only between LTSes. Much better stability.

    @loopback0 said:

    I used to use Xubuntu to avoid Unity until I discovered Mint.

    Xubuntu's freaking great, but I don't get this whole Mint hype. What's so nice about it, apart from Cinnamon, that can be used with Debian/Ubuntu easily?



  • @kt_ said:

    it's the best way to try a distro out without a flash drive and DVD.

    Nope. The best way to try out distros without a flash drive and DVD is using the virtual optical disc drive feature of this lovely toy from Zalman.

    1. Save .iso file somewhere inside _ISO folder in partition 1 of drive installed in Zalman enclosure.
    2. Reboot, pressing whatever F key exposes the BIOS's boot menu.
    3. Use jog switch and LCD on enclosure to select the .iso you want to "insert" into the virtual CD-ROM drive.
    4. Select "Zalman virtual USB CD-ROM" from BIOS boot menu.

    If your machine can boot from a disc in a real USB CD-ROM drive, it can boot from a .iso file selected in this fake one. Unetbootin and assorted shitty Windows USB stick preparers can go and get fucked.



  • Last time I installed Linux, I burned a CD with like 1 megabyte of data on it from the Ubuntu Mini ISO thing. If you're only going to install on one machine, no sense waiting for it all to download before you pick what you want.



  • @flabdablet said:

    Reboot, pressing whatever F key exposes the BIOS's boot menu.

    It's the Escape key for most computers - the F keys usually let you edit settings but not choose boot options.



  • Basically just reboot and hit random keys in the top row until something happens.



  • @LB_ said:

    It's the Escape key for most computers

    except when it's F12, F11, F10, F9, or (truly boneheadedly) F8.

    Esc is mostly a HP/Compaq thing IIRC.



  • Strangely most of the computers I have used have been HP or Toshiba. I guess I'm not manufacturally diverse.



  • @LB_ said:

    most of the computers I have used have been HP or Toshiba. I guess I'm not manufacturally diverse.

    If it's you making the buying decisions, you might also be suffering from Stockholm Syndrome.

    As a working PC fixit guy, I fucking loathe low-end Toshy and HP laptops.



  • @LB_ said:

    It's the Escape key for most computers

    It's been Del for as long as I can remember. Recently apparently the F-keys gain some traction for no reason.



  • @aliceif said:

    I think I had issues getting UNetBootIn to work, like, at all, actually.

    If I've ever had it work it was on my first try and then never again, and I'm not even sure about that first time.

    Eventually I found Rufus which works 💯 .



  • Looks like I starred the Rufus GitHub repo ages ago and completely forgot about it >_<


  • Discourse touched me in a no-no place

    @LB_ said:

    the F keys usually let you edit settings but not choose boot options.

    Huh? It's an F key on like every Windows computer I have at home or at work.



  • @loopback0 said:

    Huh? It's an F key on like every Windows computer I have at home or at work.

    It was for me too. Until Lenovo's Yoga 2 Pro. Fuck them on that. Have to look it up every time. (well, the one time I've needed it so far)

    > ** (3) Novo button** When the computer is off, press this button to start the Lenovo OneKey Recovery System or the BIOS setup utility, or to enter the boot menu

  • Discourse touched me in a no-no place

    Oh I'd forgotten about the Novo button. Yeah, my personal Lenovo laptop has that.


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  • :belt_onion:

    @LB_ said:

    Computer B has such a horribly slow processor that the desktop environment doesn't even render properly (no bar at the top or left, no title bars on windows, trying to run firefox gives all sorts of errors about some 0MB pagefile).

    Are you running on a toaster? I have a circa 2003 Dell with a Pentium 4 and... Either 256 or 512m RAM that runs Ubuntu latest... (Albeit slowly, but fast enough to use for the occasional task or SSH)


  • :belt_onion:

    @dcon said:

    When the computer is off, press this button to start the Lenovo OneKey Recovery System or the BIOS setup utility, or to enter the boot menu

    That... Actually sounds really useful. Unless I'm missing something, that button takes you straight to BIOS without having to guess an F key and catch it at the right time?


  • Discourse touched me in a no-no place

    @sloosecannon said:

    button takes you straight to BIOS without having to guess an F key and catch it at the right time?

    Essentially, yes.



  • @sloosecannon said:

    That... Actually sounds really useful. Unless I'm missing something, that button takes you straight to BIOS without having to guess an F key and catch it at the right time?

    Except when you are used to the F-hunt... And F-keys can be done when you reboot. With this, "When the computer is off". Invariably, I mutter 'fuck, I rebooted' the first time I try.

    Edit: and note the picture above. That "button" requires a paper clip or pen tip. A finger (nail) ain't gonna cut it.


  • Notification Spam Recipient

    @dcon said:

    fuck, I rebooted

    :giggity:.
    Also, this. So much this.

    @dcon said:

    That "button" requires a paper clip or pen tip. A finger (nail) ain't gonna cut it.
    At least my Sony's "Assist" button is pressable with a fingernail. It's 102% useless for anything else...


  • Discourse touched me in a no-no place

    @dcon said:

    That "button" requires a paper clip or pen tip. A finger (nail) ain't gonna cut it.

    Wrong. The Novo button can be pressed with a finger nail.


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