<![CDATA[Replacing your Operating System]]>Replacing or adding (dual-booting issue)?

Windows XP is no more generally supported by Microsoft, apart from rare security patches.
<abbr title="Microsoft Security Essentials">MSE</abbr> is supposed to last till next summer (~July).
So the question of replacing either the OS or computer, or both, is currently actual for many people across the Globe (if you care the use of Windows XP is considered of a fairly high share with Microsoft/PC users).
Many people use machines that are not capable of running "advanced" Windows 8, while Windows 7 seems to me a sort of BS. Others - are highly reluctant to give up on XP, 'cause the OS is good - let alone many are accustomed to it very much (not least because it's good!).

Some people will eventually choose to replace XP with 8, some won't.
The latter can fall into two categories: 1) those who won't want to part with their XP and need to consider dual booting - i.e. adding a new OS while preserving the old one (for whatever purposes), 2) those who will say goodbye to XP (in fact, to Windows) and get another operating system in place of the current one (like XP).

<hr>

Our thread is thus supposed to become dual booting:

  1. we'll discuss various issues with a) migrating from one OS to another and(or)
    b) making your device bootable with more than one OS;
    and
  2. we'll discuss possible options for current XP users...
    Which two "boots" are gonna overlap and intersect, no doubt.

<p title="from 'Replacing Windows XP'">If you want to keep your old PC and not upgrade, there are other options such as โ€˜dual bootingโ€™ with one of the many versions of the Linux operating system. This would enable you to carry out all online tasks from Linux, and offline tasks like word processing, spreadsheets and photo editing in Windows. This solution does take some time and effort to install, but there are a large number of websites offering advice and guidance.
http://www.getsafeonline.org/protecting-yourself/replacing-windows-xp

What I am particularly interested in is
a) dual booting
and
b) alternative operating systems for "modest" laptops (or generally - slow or 'weak' devices).

]]>https://forums.opera.com/topic/5308/replacing-your-operating-systemRSS for NodeTue, 21 Apr 2026 09:51:06 GMTTue, 23 Sep 2014 15:38:15 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Sat, 08 Nov 2014 16:10:03 GMT]]>

Well La-di-da... good find!
Thanks for the info ๐Ÿ˜Ž
I'm thinking more along the lines of a Windows based tablet, but only time will tell...
It's hard to replace a desktop for tablet when graphic/web design is involved.

My wife recently replaced her Dell desktop with a Surface Pro 3 and she loves it.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/57522https://forums.opera.com/post/57522Sat, 08 Nov 2014 16:10:03 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Sat, 08 Nov 2014 03:51:41 GMT]]>Well La-di-da... good find!

Thanks for the info ๐Ÿ˜Ž

I'm thinking more along the lines of a Windows based tablet, but only time will tell...

It's hard to replace a desktop for tablet when graphic/web design is involved.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/57472https://forums.opera.com/post/57472Sat, 08 Nov 2014 03:51:41 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Fri, 07 Nov 2014 22:30:03 GMT]]>

Think about a 17-20" tablet

They already exist since 2013, HP do a 21.5" Android tablet/slate.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/57453https://forums.opera.com/post/57453Fri, 07 Nov 2014 22:30:03 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Fri, 07 Nov 2014 22:17:14 GMT]]>I went to Window 7 Pro x64 so I could run my older programs in XP Mode without the dual-boot hoopla.

I also play with Linux Live CD's, I'm beginning to even question the need for Windows which is a little hard for a freelance graphic/web designer.

I can see down the road (less than 5 years) where most things will be ported to a tablet computer.

Think about a 17-20" tablet for creative's - close your mouth - your drooling ;}

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/57451https://forums.opera.com/post/57451Fri, 07 Nov 2014 22:17:14 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Tue, 24 Oct 2017 09:30:42 GMT]]>Imagine that!
Just phoned Microsoft* - they said I can't update my XP to anything any more*:doh:*
They said I'm gonna buy anything microscopic&soft for this machine now*:XP:*
Or else - "reserve-recovery". But it'll leave me with a ~4-year-old system status - no SP3, no any-all more or less fresh malware definitions, even I guess there won't be any patches/system updates that I've received during my use of the system...

I guess I'm left with an imminent Linux anyway, so...
A question: can Windows partition a USB-drive?

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/55949https://forums.opera.com/post/55949Tue, 24 Oct 2017 09:30:42 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Mon, 13 Oct 2014 15:30:33 GMT]]>Will ANY new OS proceed with formatting certain space?

What's there with the existing partition(s)? Will the new OS consider it/them upon installing and what (if) does it depend on/is it determined by?

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/53923https://forums.opera.com/post/53923Mon, 13 Oct 2014 15:30:33 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Fri, 26 Sep 2014 08:51:35 GMT]]>So, Kelly's apples were 200g each. Let's say they were green and red.
He said Polly could use the green one. Polly took that, cut a piece (say, 50g) off and returned that to Kelly. The other 150 green grams Polly used for her own purposes.
Right?

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52490https://forums.opera.com/post/52490Fri, 26 Sep 2014 08:51:35 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Fri, 26 Sep 2014 07:32:25 GMT]]>Polly cut off a piece of the partition (whichever one you told her to) and reformatted it ... actually making several partitions from that piece - a swap file (Linux uses a dedicated partition for a swap file) and one for the Linux OS itself. So Kelly still has two partitions, but one is smaller than it used to be.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52485https://forums.opera.com/post/52485Fri, 26 Sep 2014 07:32:25 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 17:16:20 GMT]]>

It won't even be using that partition - but the partition will be smaller.

Would you explain, please?
Like Kelly had two partitions. Then came Polly, and... What did Polly do?

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52459https://forums.opera.com/post/52459Thu, 25 Sep 2014 17:16:20 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:23:01 GMT]]>

Is it that the CPU and such things should be more powerful for that?

It helps, certainly.

You mean once it's installed, it won't be messing badly with my own private files should I place them into that partition?

It won't even be using that partition - but the partition will be smaller.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52454https://forums.opera.com/post/52454Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:23:01 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:18:03 GMT]]>

You know that Windows now uses NTFS..?

Have no idea. Even don't know what it is... :rolleyes:

The Linux installer can chop a piece off of an existing partition to reformat for its own use, but Windows had better not have anything in that piece because a low-level reformat can not be undone.

You mean once it's installed, it won't be messing badly with my own private files should I place them into that partition?

Linux files have an owner and a group, they track when they were created and not just last modified ... stuff like that.

๐Ÿ†™
(In my Windows though, I sorta have a "Created" property, too.)

Virtualbox is a virtual machine (aka VM), it can allow you to run two different systems at the same time - not merely on the same hardware, but actually both running.

Is it that the CPU and such things should be more powerful for that?

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52453https://forums.opera.com/post/52453Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:18:03 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:06:45 GMT]]>You know that Windows now uses NTFS, while it used to use something else? You know that Mac systems use something completely different - if you were to take a drive actually formatted for OSX and plug it into Windows you won't be able to read it? Linux uses its own completely different file system. The Linux installer can chop a piece off of an existing partition to reformat for its own use, but Windows had better not have anything in that piece because a low-level reformat can not be undone.

While Linux can read a Windows-formatted disk. Linux uses a different set of file properties that Windows just doesn't track. Linux files have an owner and a group, they track when they were created and not just last modified ... stuff like that.

Virtualbox is a virtual machine (aka VM), it can allow you to run two different systems at the same time - not merely on the same hardware, but actually both running. I've never really had a use for that.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52451https://forums.opera.com/post/52451Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:06:45 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 11:53:32 GMT]]>There perhaps is another possibility (people are talking about): what is a virtual box?

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52425https://forums.opera.com/post/52425Thu, 25 Sep 2014 11:53:32 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 11:21:50 GMT]]>

Does it have anything on it when you look inside it on the computer ?,

What's wrong with your punctuating skills?

I was putting/typing it in simple terms, so as not to sound confusing.

No, nothing of value will be lost if you format the drive.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52424https://forums.opera.com/post/52424Thu, 25 Sep 2014 11:21:50 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:45:29 GMT]]>

Does it have anything on it when you look inside it on the computer ?,

What's wrong with your punctuating skills? ๐Ÿ˜›
No, such new drives are not usually void. I guess I won't lose anything if I lose those... <_<

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52422https://forums.opera.com/post/52422Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:45:29 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:41:45 GMT]]>

You are talking about reformatting it, there had better be nothing you can't lose there.

Steve, what if that disc is more-than-half empty (btw, there's a fair uninterrupted space on the disc - as long as my defragmentation analysis has shown)?
Is formatting truly necessary? Am I to lose those stored files if I try to put a Linux there as it is now?

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52421https://forums.opera.com/post/52421Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:41:45 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:41:12 GMT]]>Does it have anything on it when you look inside it on the computer ?, I'm asking because a lot of new flash drives come with software on them already, such as 'Back-up' software or 'Encryption' software. If it does have anything on it (such as the above), then yes, it is best to format it first.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52420https://forums.opera.com/post/52420Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:41:12 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:35:03 GMT]]>

Yes, it is best if it is empty.

What if it's just bought, for example - should I better format it still? Or will it be not necessary?

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52419https://forums.opera.com/post/52419Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:35:03 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:29:40 GMT]]>Yes, it is best if it is empty. Do you have an empty SD card or USB flash drive/memory stick ?.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52417https://forums.opera.com/post/52417Thu, 25 Sep 2014 10:29:40 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 09:42:15 GMT]]>Linux, to give it a try, shall I have a totally empty drive?
(It is irrelevant if it'll be a USB or SD, isn't it?)

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52411https://forums.opera.com/post/52411Thu, 25 Sep 2014 09:42:15 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 08:13:54 GMT]]>You could use a USB flash drive/memory stick just for testing Linux and (if you like it) installing it to the computers internal hard drive (as dual boot) then format/wipe/blank the USB flash drive/memory stick, as it would not be needed any more.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52408https://forums.opera.com/post/52408Thu, 25 Sep 2014 08:13:54 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 06:36:45 GMT]]>

Most of those take SD cards ...

That's true.

So, will I need to throw away/move gigabytes of files to make it for a second OS? Cards and sticks are not tidily enough incorporated to the hard body of the PC. Then - move?..

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52402https://forums.opera.com/post/52402Thu, 25 Sep 2014 06:36:45 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 02:49:18 GMT]]>Most of those take SD cards ... when I installed Mageia to my old netbook I used an external optical drive. But most distros tell you how to dump an ISO to a media card or USB key these days.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52390https://forums.opera.com/post/52390Thu, 25 Sep 2014 02:49:18 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Replacing your Operating System on Wed, 24 Sep 2014 18:07:36 GMT]]>Ah!/oh!, It's a netbook, and does not have a CD drive.

http://oi49.tinypic.com/2v17l7s.jpg

Do you have a 4GB USB flash drive/Memory stick that is empty/blank joshl ?.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/52363https://forums.opera.com/post/52363Wed, 24 Sep 2014 18:07:36 GMT