Hello, I've been working with SDL, and haven't quite made a working game yet, but in the process of working with this library I started downloading all the supporting libraries necessary for various effects, and I noticed that most of them were open-source, and very interesting. I downloaded several of the programs and looked at the source code, and was jealous at all these programmers had accomplished. I have never written a program that is over more than about 400 lines long. I would like to change that fact.

To get to the point, I really like reading about Linux, and I almost feel guilty when downloading the equivalent software for Windows on my machine. I feel like I'm stealing. I'm a little paranoid that downloading open-source software is somehow illegal and that a lawyer is just waiting to have me for dinner. But so far, that hasn't happened.

I feel like a spoiled brat. I have a nice new Toshiba laptop that is running Windows 7 Premium. But I want to be able to create a dual-boot rig. I read a review about my laptop on Amazon.com, and it supports an up-to-date version of Ubuntu right out of the box. When I discovered this fact, I almost shouted with joy.

Is there a way to partition an external esata hard drive and add Ubuntu to it without having any software on the hard drive at all? Please feel free to laugh. I have no idea what to do. I want to have a complete external esata hard drive devoted to Ubuntu that I can boot to by pressing f12 at my Toshiba start-up screen.

Now I have created a Windows recovery disc. But I have no back-up copy of Windows 7 per-se. This makes me very frightened.

My mother helped me pay for this laptop and I do not want to disrespect her and ruin it. But at the same time I am going to pay her back all the money she loaned me. Yadda-yadda-yadda.

Is it possible to create a partition for ubuntu within my current C drive without touching my C drive, but instead creating a partition for my external hard drive. Also, what brands of esata hard drives are the most reliable?

If it helps, I have a Toshiba l675d and it is wonderful. I wish every person would develop an interest in Linux so I would have something to talk about with my coworkers.

I am terribly sorry if I have taken up too much of your time. But I love Linux and learning how to use different operating systems.

Thanks for all the things every member here has done,

Claude

...Is it possible to create a partition for ubuntu within my current C drive without touching my C drive, but instead creating a partition for my external hard drive...

How often and how much will you use Ubuntu? You could just install VirtualBox and run ubuntu in there. 3D support is somewhat limited though.

Other options would be to resize your C partition and install ubuntu in the empty space (Ubuntu will install a boot loader). Or you could install ubuntu to the external and change the BIOS to boot from external before internal HDD if it's connected.

I heard Ubuntu erases the Windows boot loader and you can no longer load windows. That's what I'm worried about.

If you dual-boot the system, the following happens:

• Linux will (usually) shrink the Windows partition to make room for itself.
• Linux will create a new partition for itself in the newly reclaimed space.
• Linux will install itself on the new partition.
• Linux will overwrite the bootloader with a linux bootloader. It will give you the option of which OS to boot into when you start the machine.
  Notes:
  
  
  • You CAN reinstall the windows bootloader. It's usually one of the recovery features on the windows disk. (This assumes of course that you actually possess the windows install disk. Many computers don't come with a shiny new one).
  • You CAN entirely delete linux off the partition and delete the partition itself. However, getting the windows partition back to its original size might be error prone. It can be done with tools like PartitionMagic or QTParted, but seems risky to me.
  • Linux will recognize and read/write to the windows partition, but windows will not even recognize the linux partition (and why would it?). That is to say, you will not see another drive letter show up in My Computer.
  • You CAN install linux on a thumbdrive and boot off that (if your BIOS will allow a USB boot).
  • You CAN install linux on an entirely separate harddrive. That's a good idea.
  • You CAN try a live CD version, although it will be slow.
  • You CAN install linux on an old frankenstein computer built from scraps that nobody loves anymore
  • There are other distros besides Ubuntu that specialize in loading onto thumbdrives, for instance. Do some research if that's what you want.
  • Installing linux through a virtual machine (like VMware) inside of the existing windows installation is probably the safest and most easily removed option.

Thanks for all the replies!

I think I will try the virtualbox just to be safe.

leiavoia, thanks for all the information. It's good to know I can install on an external hard drive. That's what I'll probably end up doing, because I love all the stuff you can do with linux, and I think the pipe command (|)
is wicked-cool.

VildNinja, thanks for the advice, but I do think that grub, the program that installs the boot loader, will overwrite my windows booter. And I don't have a new copy of windows directly on a CD. Windows is so lame sometimes .

Moreover, if you're really not happy seeing GRUB starting windows, you can do it in reverse, using Windows' bootloader to load the linux bootloader. (Use EasyBCD for this.)