Downloading and Installing Ubuntu 8.04

The downloading and installation of a new operating system is definitely a major hill to overcome, mainly because of information overload.  All of a sudden, you have to know about .iso files, bootloaders, burning software, partitions, and a ton of other jargon.  With Ubuntu, you don’t need to worry about any of that. In fact, with a virtual CD/DVD drive, you don’t even need to worry about burning to a CD or DVD and choosing software. 

If you really want to, Canonical (the corporate force behind Ubuntu) will send you a free CD, but the wait is 6-10 weeks.  Don’t do it – rather, download Ubuntu from any server located near you.  I used the Michigan server, but I believe that they’re all pretty fast.  I was receiving speed rates peaking at around 700kb/s – the whole 600MB download finished in less than half an hour (I’d know, I was watching Fresh Prince of Bel-Air at the time).  If you don’t have speedy Internet, you can just leave the computer on while you go to work or sleep and have Ubuntu download while you spend time elsewhere.  That’s half the battle.  Onto the fortress of installation!

Usually, installation is an easy battle with Windows – click a few buttons, check the Terms & Conditions, wait a bit.  But with many distributions of Linux, there are text-based installers and command lines – and you don’t want to open the can of worms.  Ubuntu is different; it uses the Wubi installer, making installation no more difficult than a regular piece of software.  You can actually burn the Ubuntu .iso file you downloaded to a CD or DVD, and then stick it into your computer.  You don’t have to reboot or shut down, just stick it in like you would a normal CD, and run it.  Click a few buttons.  Wait a while.  Ubuntu will automatically begin installation and prompt a reboot – which will then continue the setup, provided you choose to boot into Ubuntu and not Windows XP or Vista by accident.

As the tech consumer’s blogger, I’m obligated to find an absolutely free method to installing Ubuntu – so put that Loonie or dollar bill away, folks – we won’t need a CD or DVD.  Simply navigate your way to the ocean of Daemon and pull out your Excalibur – Daemon Tools Lite.  Basically, what Daemon Tools does is mount the .iso file into a virtual CD or DVD drive.  For example, if you had a Starcraft .iso, you could run the game just on your computer – without the physical CD required (I’ll let you decide whether that’s legal or not).  Thus, following this principle, we can mount the Ubuntu .iso file and run it just like that.  Usually, this scenario would not have worked with other Ubuntu versions, as they need a rebooting which means deactivating Daemon Tools along with your computer.  But, because Ubuntu 8.04 allows for a simple installation within Windows, then you will be able to mount .iso file right from Windows.  Read on, because the battle’s almost won.

When prompted to reboot, please save any other work you might’ve been working on and do so.  After booting up, you will have the option of either loading Windows Vista/XP or Ubuntu (I used Windows Vista, but I’m not completely sure about XP – I’ll assume that they have similar booting options).  Boot into Ubuntu and allow the setup to continue.  Fifteen minutes later,  you will have Ubuntu 8.04 working right on your computer – the whole process will probably take an hour, so I’d suggest turning on the TV, grabbing a book or playing some video games – just make sure the computer’s close by, because there will be some buttons that still need to be clicked.