Getting Ubuntu
Ubuntu is an entirely free OS. When you have a copy of it, you can give it to as many people as you like. This free characteristic of Ubuntu means that it is simple to get a copy. If you have a high-speed Internet connection, go to www.ubuntu.com/download, and follow the instructions. You can select a desktop or alternate install CD image and download it.
If you are willing to wait, you can buy authorized Ubuntu CDs at www.ubuntu.com/download/ubuntu/cds.
Burning a CD
When you download an Ubuntu CD, you download a special .iso file, which is the same size as a CD (around 650MB). This file is an “image” of the installation CD. When you burn the .iso file to the CD-ROM, you have a complete installation CD all ready to go.
You need to use a CD-burning application to burn your .iso file to the CD correctly. Inside the application should be a menu option called Burn from Disk Image or something similar. The wording and details will vary according to the program you use to burn the image. You should select the .iso file, insert a blank CD, and after a few minutes, out will pop a fresh Ubuntu installation CD.
To give you a head start, the following subsections present instructions for burning a CD in some popular tools.
In Windows 7
To burn your image using Windows 7, follow these steps.
- Right-click on the icon for your downloaded .iso image and select Open with > Windows Disc Image Burner.
- Select a writable CD/CVD drive from the drop-down box.
- Click Burn.
In Older Versions of Windows with ISO Recorder
To burn your .iso file with the freely available ISO Recorder, first go to http://isorecorder.alexfeinman.com, and then download and install ISO Recorder. To burn your image, follow these steps.
- Insert a blank CD into your CD writer.
- Locate the .iso file you downloaded, right-click it, and select Copy Image to CD.
- Click Next, and the recording process begins.
- When the image has been written, click Finish to exit ISO Recorder.
In Mac OS X
To burn your image using Mac OS X, follow these steps.
- Load the Disk Utility application (found in your Utilities folder).
- Insert a blank CD, and then choose Images > Burn and select the .iso file.
In Ubuntu
To burn your image using Ubuntu, follow these steps. To burn your image using Mac OS X, follow these steps.
- Insert a blank CD into your CD writer.
- In the File Browser, right-click on the file you just downloaded, and choose Write to Disk. The Write to Disk dialog box opens.
- In the dialog box, choose your CD writer and speed, and then click on Write. The Writing Files to Disk Progress dialog box opens, and File Browser begins writing the disk.
Creating a Bootable USB Stick
To create a bootable USB stick, follow these directions for your current operating system.
In Windows
To create your bootable USB stick using Windows, follow these steps.
- Download the USB installer provided by pendrivelinux.com at www.pendrivelinux.com/universal-usb-installer-easy-as-1-2-3/ and follow the installation instructions.
- Insert your USB stick into the computer and run the USB installer from pendrivelinux.com.
- Select Ubuntu Desktop Edition from the drop-down menu.
- Click Browse and select the Ubuntu .iso image you downloaded.
- Select the USB drive for installation and click Create.
In Mac OS X
The Ubuntu download page recommends that Mac users install using a CD because the workarounds required to create a bootable USB stick on OS X are complex.
In Ubuntu
To create your bootable USB stick using Ubuntu, follow these steps.
- Insert your USB stick into the computer.
- Open the Dash (see Chapter 3 if you don’t yet know what the Dash is) and search for Startup Disk Creator. Click the icon for Startup Disk Creator to run the program.
- Select your downloaded Ubuntu .iso image. If your downloaded .iso image does not automatically appear in the list in Startup Disk Creator, click Other to select it.
- Select the USB stick in the bottom box.
- Click Make Startup Disk.