Upgrade to ubantu from windows XP

8/9/2019 Upgrade to ubantu from windows XP

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How to upgrade from WindowsXP to UbuntuPosted on 21 Apr 2014 at 09:00

If you need to migrate away from Windows XP, the free, modern U untu!" is an idea# $hoi$e% &arien 'raham("mith ma)es the swit$h

Upgrading to a new operating system is an uphea*a#, and if it+s a new *ersion of Windows you+remo*ing to, it+s an e pense as we##% "o it+s understanda #e that some indi*idua#s and usinesses ha*en+tyet migrated their o#d $omputers away from Windows XP, e*en though se$urity pat$hes and supportha*e fina##y een $ut off for good%

-here+s no need to sti$) with a dangerous#y *u#nera #e operating system% Upgrading may e mu$heasier than you thin) . and if you swit$h to a /inu distri ution, rather than hopping up to Windows , itwon+t $ost you a penny, sin$e the !" and ma or app#i$ations are free%

!n these pages, we+## i##ustrate how easy it is to mo*e an o#d XP P o*er to the #atest *ersion of theuser(friend#y U untu /inu !" . and suggest whi$h programs to use in /inu for your e*eryday tas)s%

Planning for your upgrade

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to!upgrade!from!windows!"p!

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3efore you start ma)ing p#ansto mo*e to U untu, the firstthing to do is $he$) that thenewer !" wi## a$tua##y meetyour needs% 3e#ow, you+## findour guide to U untu+s *ariousapp#i$ations: most e*eryday$omputing tas)s are we##

Page 1 of 10How to upgrade from Windows XP to Ubuntu | Analysis | Features | PC Pro

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$o*ered, ut if you need towor) with a parti$u#ar fi#e, youmay find that Windows isyour on#y option%

Assuming U untu is suita #e

for you, the simp#est way to approa$h the upgrade is to set up a dua#( oot system, #ea*ing XP inta$t%We don+t re$ommend that you ma)e a ha it of ooting up your o#d Windows XP insta##ation, sin$e thiswi## e pose you to se$urity ris)s% 3ut you+## e a #e to dire$t#y a$$ess a## your Windows fo#ders withinU untu, so doing it this way means you won+t ha*e to worry a out #osing any persona# data in themo*e% ou+## a#so ha*e an emergen$y fa## a$) if a tas) $omes up that $an+t e done in U untu 5or onanother P 6%

"in$e XP and U untu wi## oth ha*e to s7uee8e onto your hard dis), we re$ommend ha*ing a it of a$#ear(out to ma)e spa$e for the new !"% Use the Windows &is) #eanup too# to remo*e unneededtemporary fi#es and uninsta## any unwanted #arge app#i$ations% -his is a#so a good time to get rid of any#arge persona# fi#es you don+t need: use a too# su$h as Win%ir&tat ( ttps'//windirstat info$ to identifywhat+s eating up the most spa$e on your dis)% &on+t forget to empty the e$y$#e 3in when you+refinished%

If you $an+t free up more than 10'3, $onsider wiping your Windows insta##ation to gi*e U untu spa$e%-his is easy to do during the insta##ation pro$ess, ut if you p#an to ta)e this route, a$) up your fi#es toan e terna# dis) first . and e *ery $arefu# not to miss any%

) oosing and downloading a *ersion of Ubuntu

U untu $omes in a *ariety of *ersions, ut the #atest des)top re#ease $an a#ways e down#oaded fromt e main Ubuntu site ( ttp'//www ubuntu +om/download/des,top$ % -he newest *ersion . 14%04 /-",ni$)named the -rusty -ahr; . is a #ong(term support; re#ease that+s guaranteed to remain sta #e, with$ontinued se$urity and support updates, unti# Apri# 2019%

-he defau#t down#oads are


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entai# pressing a )ey whi#e the $omputer starts up in order to a$$ess the oot menu . or e*en going intothe 3I!" and $hanging the order of oot de*i$es to gi*e the U"3 or opti$a# dri*e a higher priority thanyour main hard dis)%

est dri*e or full installation0

If you aren+t $ertain whether U untu is right for you, you $an easi#y try it out without ma)ing any$hanges to your system: simp#y oot up the insta##ation & & and se#e$t the -ry U untu; option 5ratherthan Insta## U untu;6% -his wi## oot up a #i*e; U untu en*ironment, running entire#y from the opti$a#dis$ 5and from memory6, so you $an get a fee# for the !" and app#i$ations efore ma)ing a$ommitment%

(/gallery/features/388261/ ow!

to!upgrade!from!windows!"p!to!ubuntu/2#81#8$

3e$ause of its re#ian$e on theopti$a# dri*e, the -ry U untu;en*ironment is mu$h #essresponsi*e than a rea#insta##ation, so don+t edisheartened if it+s annoying#ys#ow% Bor o *ious reasons it+sa#so not possi #e to insta##additiona# app#i$ations,a#though you $an a$$ess and

update fi#es on your Windowshard dis)% If you+re so#d onU untu right away, you $aninsta## the !" from within the

#i*e en*ironment, simp#y $#i$) on the Insta## U untu; i$on at the top of the /aun$her%

?eed#ess to say, if you oot from the insta##ation media and se#e$t Insta## U untu;, the operatingsystem wi## e insta##ed on your hard dis)% ou+## e as)ed whether you want to down#oad updateswhi#e insta##ing; . this wi## ta)e #onger, ut it means that when you+re finished any re$ent#y updated !"$omponents and dri*ers wi## e ready and wor)ing%

It+s a#so a good idea to ti$) Insta## this third party software;, whi$h refers to the B#uendo =P> p#ugin%Without it, you won+t e a #e to #isten to =P>s, whi$h pro a #y isn+t what you want% It+s on#y e $#uded ydefau#t sin$e the en$oder isn+t fu##y free and open(sour$e%

ou+## ne t e as)ed how you want to set up U untu% As dis$ussed a o*e, we suggest you $hooseInsta## U untu a#ongside Windows;@ if you $hoose ep#a$e Windows with U untu;, e $ertain you+*ea$)ed up a## your data efore pro$eeding% -o set up the dua#( oot system, the U untu insta##er di*ides

your hard dis) into two partitions: drag the di*ider to $hoose how mu$h spa$e you want to )eep for

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Windows and how mu$h to a##o$ate to U untu% ou may as we## shrin) XP down a#most as far as it wi##go: ust #ea*e a giga yte or two of headroom in $ase you e*er need to oot a$) into Windows forsome reason, as it won+t wor) proper#y if there+s no spare dis) spa$e%

-he resi8e operation may ta)e minutes or hours, depending on how fu## and fragmented your hard dis)is% ou+## then e prompted for administrati*e detai#s, in$#uding whi$h time 8one you+re in, whi$h sort of

)ey oard you+re using, what username you want and so on% If it+s a home P that you don+t share withothers, it+s pro a #y safe to a$ti*ate /og in automati$a##y;, so you don+t need to enter a password e*erytime your U untu system starts up, and there+s no need to Cn$rypt my home fo#der;%

-he insta##er wi## now grind away for a whi#e, after whi$h you+## e prompted to restart the $omputer,remo*e the insta##ation dis$ and wait for your new U untu P to oot up%

inding your way

U untu is a simp#e and intuiti*e operating system, ut it differs in a few )ey ways from the Windows XP

sty#e of doing things% -he first thing you+## noti$e is that there+s no "tart menu, ut you $an #aun$happ#i$ations y $#i$)ing the i$ons on the /aun$her at the #eft of the s$reen% ou $an a#so sear$h forsoftware and fi#es y name y opening the &ash;@ to do so, $#i$) the swir#y U untu #ogo at the top ofthe /aun$her, or tap the Windows )ey and start typing% -he spi)y i$on at the top right of the menu ar iswhere you+## find system settings and shutdown options%

(/gallery/features/388261/ ow!to!upgrade!from!windows!"p!

to!ubuntu/2#811 $

our persona# fo#ders inU untu a## #i*e in a #o$ation$a##ed Dome; . you $an

rowse it y opening the Bi#es*iew 5the se$ond /aun$heri$on from the top6% Dere,you+## find fo#ders for =usi$,&o$uments and so on, aswe## as a &es)top fo#der foreasy a$$ess to fi#es on your

des)top% -here+s a#so a Pu #i$ fo#der, where you $an )eep things you want to share with others: if you$reate mu#tip#e user a$$ounts 5say, for other fami#y mem ers6, ea$h wi## ha*e their own Dome dire$tory,

ut on#y the $ontents of the Pu #i$ fo#der wi## e a$$essi #e to other users%

U untu $omes with a de$ent range of preinsta##ed software . more so than Windows . and addingmore is easy% -he U untu "oftware entre is effe$ti*e#y an app store; for your des)top, #etting you findand insta## new programs in a few $#i$)s 5its i$on #oo)s #i)e a shopping ag with an A; on the front6%

And e$ause this is /inu , a huge proportion of the $ontent on offer is free% 3e#ow you+## find our guideto some of the ma or /inu app#i$ations for the o s you+re used to doing on Windows%

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With this information under your e#t, you shou#d e ready to start e p#oring . and if you ha*e more7uestions, drop y t e offi+ial elp site ( ttps'// elp ubuntu +om$ for a more detai#ed guide% U untu is apowerfu# modern operating system, so you may find you 7ui$)#y $ome to prefer it to XP%

Web browsing

-here+s no Internet C p#orer on /inu . some wou#d say that+s a good thing . ut irefo" $omespreinsta##ed in U untu% It wor)s ust #i)e the Windows *ersion and $an use a## the same add(ons, soyou+## fee# right at home%

Users of other rowsers aren+t #eft out, either% pera isn+t hosted in the U untu "oftware entre, utyou $an insta## it from t e pera website ( ttp'//www opera +om/download$ : your operating systemshou#d e automati$a##y dete$ted, so a## you ha*e to do is $#i$) the ig &own#oad utton to get theinsta##er% If you+re using U untu+s standard insta##ation of Birefo , the defau#t option wi## e to open thedown#oaded fi#e with /usr/bin/software!+enter @ a$$ept this and $#i$) Insta## inside the "oftware entreapp to set it up%

If you prefer hrome, you $an insta## its open(sour$e rother ) romium dire$t#y from the "oftwareentre% -his rowser #oo)s and wor)s ust #i)e regu#ar hrome, and if you sign in, it wi## e*en syn$ youroo)mar)s, history and settings from hrome% Dowe*er, paid(for features su$h as B#ash and D%2


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Chat and VoIP

Skype is owned by Microsoft, so you might expect it to be Windows-only. In fact, theres a perfectlygood native Ubuntu client that you can download from the main !ype website.

If you want to !eep up with contacts on other chat services, the preinstalled Empathy instant-messaging tool should do the "ob. It supports a variety of systems including #IM, $oogle %al!,&aceboo! and 'ahoo ( and it integrates with Ubuntu via the envelope icon on the tas!bar. 'ou canstay signed on to several services at once, and receive chat notifications all in one place.

Cloud storage (http://www.cloudpro.co.uk/iaas/cloud-storage

!rop"o# offers a native client for Ubuntu, which you can set up directly from the oftware )entre. Ifyou prefer to use Microsofts *ne+rive formerly called Sky!ri$e , youll need a wor!around the freeStorage %ade Easy ser$ice (https://storagemadeeasy.com provides a native Ubuntu client andhandles !y+rive syncing itself. &pple iCloud (http://www.cloudpro.co.uk/saas/producti$ity/apple-icloud , /ox, $oogle +rive and other services are supported too. Until recently, Ubuntu also offered itsown Ubuntu *ne service, but Ubuntus publisher )anonical has now discontinued the service,ac!nowledging that going up against the li!es of +ropbox isnt a competitive strategy.

' ice applications

Ubuntu comes with the well-featured )i"re' ice suite preinstalled, which can open and edit Word,0xcel and 1ower1oint files. 'ou can also create new documents, spreadsheets and presentations, andsave them in *ffice-compatible file formats. ome people actually prefer 2ibre*ffice to Microsoft *ffice,

than!s to its more traditional ( that is, not ribbon-based ( interface.

*ffice documents may not always loo! exactly right in 2ibre*ffice, however. %heyll be readable, but notevery advanced feature is fully supported the Writer word processor is less flexible than Word when itcomes to tables, page borders and watermar!s, for example. *ther features simply arent available)alc the e3uivalent to 0xcel lac!s &lash fill, spar!lines and other handy data-analysis features. %he2ibre*ffice website hosts a useful online eature comparison (http:// of the two suites.

# final point to note is that theres no 2ibre*ffice e3uivalent to Microsoft 1ublisher. %he Ubuntuoftware )entre offers the free Scri"us !*P pac!age as an alternative, but its ability to wor! with other

file formats is still a wor! in progress4 if you have an archive of 1U/ files, theres no guarantee youll beable to open and edit them within Ubuntu.

+e" editing

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0 !0"!#01$%ttp&''www(p)pro()o(u*'features'+,,#61'%ow!to!upgrade!from!windows!-p!to!ubuntu'pr(((


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1redictably, big-namepac!ages such as #dobes+reamweaver and Musearent offered on 2inux, soyou cant easily bring bigpro"ects across. &or simple

tas!s, the oftware )entreoffers a popular 5%M2 editorcalled 3lue ish . &or a morevisual approach, you can edit

5%M2 directly in 2ibre*ffice Writer. *ther options include Sea%onkey Composer (http://www.seamonkey-pro4ect.org and 5ompo6er (http://www.kompo7er.net 4 both of these need to bemanually compiled and installed, however, so beginners may prefer to steer clear.

%usic



to-u"untu/ 1 008

Ubuntus built-in 9hythm"o#music player is a simple wayto manage your music libraryand podcasts. It supportsM16, *$$, &2#) and M7#audio files, plays and rips)+s, and integrates withdo8ens of internet radioservices (including 2ast.fmand 2ibre.fm ( to help you

discover new music. adly, theres no simple way to move playlists and ratings across from i%unes orWindows Media 1layer search online and youll find various scripts that promise to help, but if they gowrong youre on your own.

ince #pple doesnt ma!e an Ubuntu version of i%unes, theres also no way to sync an i1od or i1honefrom the des!top, or to buy new content from the i%unes tore ( although you can manage and buy

content directly on your i* device. If youre using a non-i* player such as an #ndroid phone, youcan buy music from many alternative services, such as the #ma8on M16 tore. #nother option forlibrary management and streaming is oogle Play %usic %anager , which offers a nati$e ;"untuclient (https://play.google.com/music .

Video

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Ubuntus Videos application is based on the free %otem player4 most popular video formats aresupported natively, and its set up as the default handler for them, so you can simply double-clic! on avideo file to play.

If you need something more versatile, head to the oftware )entre and download V)C %edia Player ,which supports more or less every type of media file you can imagine. It can also play +9+s, but you

may need to install the closed-source ;"untu e#tras(http://www.pcpro.co.uk/links/ ,?id to ma!e this wor!.

Photo editing



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If your interest in photography

extends chiefly to organisingand tidying up yoursnapshots before uploadingthem to &aceboo!, Ubuntuhas you covered. %hepreinstalled Shotwell photomanager can import and sortimages from any camera orphone, using tags and ratings

to divide up your library. 'ou can apply common ad"ustments such as twea!ing the exposure and

colour tint, crop out unwanted details and fix red-eye.

More advanced edits can be carried out in I%P the $:U Image Manipulation 1rogram , which youllfind in the Ubuntu oftware )entre. Its capable of matching sophisticated 1hotoshop effects such as)ontent-#ware &ill and Move, and its even possible to process raw images from a + 2; ( the ;@9awmodule wor!s as both a standalone application and a $IM1 plugin for importing raw files. &or !eensnappers, however, switching to 2inux may feel li!e a step bac!wards the $IM1 is easier to use than itonce was, than!s to a recent interface overhaul, but in our view it still isnt as accessible as, say,1hotoshop 0lements. U&;aw, meanwhile, does a great "ob of processing raw images, but lac!s thedetailed touch-up tools of #dobes 2ightroom and )amera ;aw software.

Video editing



to-u"untu/ 1 01?

'penShot is a free non-linear video editor that youll

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find in the oftware )entre. Itisnt as advanced ascommercial Windowspac!ages, however ( thin!Windows Movie Ma!er ratherthan ony 9egas. #nd note

that *pen hot cant importvideo pro"ects from other

applications ( only its own * 1 file format is supported. If you need more power, try the free edition of)ightworks (http://www.lwks.com . %his is a much more advanced video editor, but a licence to unloc!its full feature set costs


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&or more details about purchasing this feature andDor images for editorial usage, please contactEasmine amra on picturesAdennis.co.uk (mailto:picturesAdennis.co.uk

1rinted from www.pcpro.co.uk

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Upgrade to ubantu from windows XP

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