I am ready to dance with the penguin

[Enablingwolf]

Come on mang. You have to download it and make it work. ISO is not an exe. ISO images are not Windows 98, it is something modern. Heck.. Even game pirates know and luv ISO files.

You can mount the ISO via daemon tools. OR.. Install a virtual box.

There is a few ways we can help ya out. If your stuck on.. Do it for me.. OR, it is not click and shoot...

 

[MRD]

Linux is not a program, it's an operating system. You cannot run it under Windows (well, virtualization, but that isn't what we're talking about). You install Windows with a CD and you install Linux with a CD... no difference. ISO's are just images, bit by bit, of a cdrom. When someone has a cdrom and makes an iso, they can send the iso to you as a file, and you can make a cdrom that is an exact copy. Burn it using any number of programs... I think Vista/7 do it in the OS. There is also CD Burner XP Pro which I've used in XP or 2K and which is shareware I think (you can download it for free).

Making ISO's is very common... any techie should know how.

 

[Theocnoob]

Linux is not a program, it's an operating system. You cannot run it under Windows (well, virtualization, but that isn't what we're talking about). You install Windows with a CD and you install Linux with a CD... no difference. ISO's are just images, bit by bit, of a cdrom. When someone has a cdrom and makes an iso, they can send the iso to you as a file, and you can make a cdrom that is an exact copy. Burn it using any number of programs... I think Vista/7 do it in the OS. There is also CD Burner XP Pro which I've used in XP or 2K and which is shareware I think (you can download it for free).

Making ISO's is very common... any techie should know how.

I don't consider myself techie. I've got Roxio...


What the hell is 'mounting an ISO'?

Can I just download the ISO to my HD, burn it to a CD as an ISO and load that CD in my bios and install?

 

[Enablingwolf]

Well Ubuntu has the Wubi thing. So it can be sort of like an application.

Download the ISO... Since you got Roxio, which does burn ISO files. We can help you from here. Just be patient with us. As we will be with you.

Honestly, it is not as hard as you think.

 

[Bobnova]

Here's what you do:
Get a burnable dvd and a dvd burner.
Put the burner in your computer and plug it in, then put the dvd in the burner.
Go online with windows and download "astroburn", it's free (made by the daemon tools people) and very good.
Hit the green devil face flaming CD button, select the ISO file you downloaded.
Hit OK a couple times.
The cd will eventually eject, you now have what is called a LiveCD.
If you tell your computer to boot off it, you'll get a menu asking what you want to do, try without changes/install/wholebunchaotherstuff. Hit try it.

It'll boot to a fully functional linux you can play with, but isn't permanent. Once you shut it down, it's all gone.

 

[Stratus_ss]

Step-by-step how to for Roxio

1) Go to Creator Classic
2) Put in a blank disc
3) Click "File",then click "Record Disc from Image"
4) A window will pop up.Browse to the file you want to burn (your .iso).Highlight it and click Open
5) A Burn Progress window comes up,click "Burn".The burn should start.

 

[Stratus_ss]

What the hell is 'mounting an ISO'?

Can I just download the ISO to my HD, burn it to a CD as an ISO and load that CD in my bios and install?

Mounting an iso means to use a program that fakes the Operating System into believing it is a DVDROM. For installing programs from ISO this is my prefered method, it skips the step of actually burning the DVD

As to what you do with an ISO of an operating system, like you said, burn it to a cd, reboot and boot off the dvd/cd you just created

 

[MRD]

Can I just download the ISO to my HD, burn it to a CD as an ISO and load that CD in my bios and install?

You do not do anything to the BIOS... that is lower level, below the OS.

Yes, you can just download the ISO to your hard drive (in any OS), burn it to a CD or DVD (make sure you use the right one), put the CD in the drive, and turn on the computer / restart the computer. Do whatever you do normally to boot from a CD... often there is a key you hit to select it on boot.

 

[ihrsetrdr]

CONFUSED!!

I've never burned, read, or successfully done ANYTHING with an ISO.

I can't just like, put an actual bootable file on an external HD, reboot, tell my bios to boot from said HD and shazaam?

I have to burn a CD? (so 1999) Seriously?

There's no other way to do this? Do I have to use an ISO?

Can I like, download an actual executable to HD A and have it install linux onto HD B?

??

O.K., how about working with a pendrive? Check the following link on USB Linux Mint 7 Flash Drive creation in Windows

pendrivelinux.com has a ton of other tutorials...check 'em out!

 

[Sir Barton]

Ive always used Unetbootin to writes ISOs to a thumb drive. It works excellent for nearly all distros.

http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/

 

[Bobnova]

The flash drive route works too, i find the slowness of my flashdrive painful though.

There is the Wubi Way as well, that doesn't require any funny business beyond saying Wubi.

 

[ihrsetrdr]

I've used this-> http://goodbye-microsoft.com/

but I would NOT advise it's use unless you are really really ready to say goodbye to MS in a big way.

 

[Enablingwolf]

I've used this-> http://goodbye-microsoft.com/

but I would NOT advise it's use unless you are really really ready to say goodbye to MS in a big way.

That is darn slick there. Good of you to use the skittles colors to warn.

It reminds me of Wubi. Except this is fired off via a download. Instead of the disc.

 

[MRD]

Yeah thumb drives are always an option... just about any Linux distro can be installed off one, BUT you still have to boot off it. You don't install Linux from within Windows (yes there are some wacky exceptions/hacks but I am trying to keep this simple).

Another possibility is the network or even floppies. I install Linux often off a PXE server I maintain. All my computers can netboot and I can use that for recovery or other issues. You can boot off a floppy then do the rest of the install from the net (at least you can do Gentoo this way, not sure which distros allow for this).

You can always save the cd iso on an nfs server (or even samba maybe). Then you can mount the iso via a loopback and install from there after booting from floppy/usb/whatever... You are making this harder though... it's just easier to burn the cd, which is why MS, Apple, and Linux are all primarily installed this way.

 

[Enablingwolf]

Yeah thumb drives are always an option... just about any Linux distro can be installed off one, BUT you still have to boot off it. You don't install Linux from within Windows (yes there are some wacky exceptions/hacks but I am trying to keep this simple).

Even so with your description of wacky hacks and such.
You will have to at some point reboot to finalize the install and set it up. The only other option is a bootable virtual appliance.

The only option for lazy adventurers. IS to send of the drive to someone willing to do it for you. Then when you get it back. Set it up/ Not saying your lazy ocnoob. You just seem to never had to explore ISO files before.
(First year CompSci. I had a hard time wrapping my head around this ISO stuff. Before Windows 3.1 was out. So you can make fun of me.. I had to learn how to do punch card stuff.. Never used it since.)

Just so you know. ISO is not a computer thing... It stands for .. ..
International Standards for Business, Government and Society
Or ...
International Standards Organization
http://www.iso.org/iso/home.htm

So everyone is on the same page for each number the standard stands for.
Discs are ISO9660, that does go into other standards, but will still talk 9660. Your Win 3.1 disc will talk Apple Snow..

[You ever see them trucks carrying petrol? Well that diamond has a number and that is an ISO.. So anyone knows what it is. No matter where or what that truck is doing.]

This is not one OS or special format.. This is all the discs you use on your computer of any flavor. Be it Mac, PC ... Or anything else. We all talk the same ISO for DVD CD.. Russian, English or Chinese.

Here is a wiki for you to check out if you like.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_image


Being a geek is about exploration and learning stuff for the challenge alone.. Not easy, do it for me.

noob, as in ocnoob. We can take this as simple as you like, or go there.. lol Some us love to learn and teach. One step at a time. You got a lot of folks wanting and willing to help you. Be patient and be open minded. Just let us know if your willing to follow through. Some things we can help change, some things are standardized throughout computers. So work with us, so we can get you going.

It is not a nuclear reactor. So take your time. The machine is not going to explode.

If an ISO install disc is an issue. I can mail you one, whatever you like. If not me, I bet someone will.

 

[Bobnova]

You can also order a free disk from many linux distributors, or i'm sure almost anybody in this forum would be happy to burn you a disk and send it free (or free+shipping).

Then you don't have to muck with burning one yourself.

 

[I.M.O.G.]

I'm confused with what the hangup is with installation media... If your installing windows, its usually going to be done from a CD. That's the same way Linux is usually installed, although network installs, LiveCDs, thumbdrives, etc are also options.

If you have never installed an OS before, then the easiest way to install linux is to download the ISO for whichever version of linux you want, google a guide for burning an ISO to disc with roxio, then following the installation prompts once you boot from the CD.

Every OS installation requires you to boot from its installation media. If you want to skip the ISO burning part, just PM me your address and I'll mail you a CD with the installation media ready to go. Downloading and burning the ISO can be completed in 20 minutes tho, and its a good thing to know how to do anyways.

 

[MRD]

We used to commonly burn iso's for people and mail them since connections were slow (ppl had dialup). We had a sticky on it for years. We stopped because downloading and burning is something just about anyone can do with fast internet connections and cd (and even dvd) burners becoming very commonplace.

 

[curtis1552]

I will mention that the standard Ubuntu Desktop CD will no longer give you an option of where to install the bootloader, you have to use the Alternative Install Disk for that,
If you really want to run from a Flashdrive PenDriveLinuxOS is really nice, based off Mandriva and runs at an acceptable speed for basic usage. It (like most USB drive based distromods) saves temporary information to a RAMdisk then saves that to the Flashdrive during shutdown, this exteds tha life of the flash drive and makes access quicker during regular usage.

 

[Enablingwolf]

I was checking out Fedora and how they do pendrive LiveUSB. Not to bad, even though I am not fond of RPM. Neato stuff, plus the sugar on a stick project.

How Fedora has that installer for the pen drive is pretty easy to get going. Plus allows you to select which version you would like to deploy on the stick. What makes it nice. It is persistent also.