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I want to try ubuntu out because my laptops (3 years old) been running slow on windows 8.1 lately. So i just have a few questions.

1) Which version of Ubuntu should I instill? (14.0.4.1 LTS or 14.10)

2) Does Ubuntu remove my files(docs, pics, so on)? 2.1) If not what happens to my files(where to they go)?

3) Will my 3G dongle work?

4) When installing ubuntu I should pick 32 bit and not 64 bit because my windows is 32 bit, right?

5) Will it run?

Laptop Info:

HP Compaq Presario CQ56

Windows Pro 8.1 32 bit(originally was windows 7)

Processor: Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU 925 @ 2.30GHz, ~2.3GHz

Ram: 3GB DDR2

Graphics Card: Mobile Intel(R) 4 Series Express Chipset Family (Microsoft Corporation - WDDM 1.1) Display Memory: 1565 MB 1366 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)

REW
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3 Answers3

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answer for question: 1- if i were you i would go for 14.04.1 because it is more stable and the update have less probability to cause your system to be unstable, also the more old is the system( especially LTS like 14.04) , the more stable it is, the more you can find answers for questions you may have in the future

2- if you decided to wipe your disk and install ubuntu instead of windows , you would lose you files if you didn't do a backup, but you can also partition your disk to two or more partitions one of them will host the new system, and the rest serves as data/windows partition, typically if you want to dual-boot (means install one next to the other on the same machine) windows and Ubuntu, you can have three partitions one for windows on for Ubuntu and one for data (usually ntfs) to act as a common data store accessible by both systems

3- almost all 3g dongles drivers are included in Ubuntu 14.04.1 and i wouldn't worry much about that, but if you encountered any issue, we can always help

4- your processor as mentioned in intel's documentation is a 64 bit processor so you are good either with 32 bit version or 64 bit.

5- i think that 2.3Mhz is more than enough to run Ubuntu also 3Gb ram is a good assistant for that

welcome to ubuntu, have a good time with OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE

younes
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  • Get the 32bit version. With 3Gb of ram there's no point using the 64bit version, it will use up a lot more memory. – lemonsqueeze Nov 24 '14 at 11:41
  • i have a 64 bit version, and it is taking exactly 800.5Mb or ram right now – younes Nov 24 '14 at 20:15
  • See What are the differences between 32 bit and 64 bit and which should i choose – lemonsqueeze Nov 25 '14 at 12:47
  • for that, i guess we shouldn't have invented those "slow" 64 bit machines, they offer less performance than their 32 bit counterpart according to your source,for me that's just an opinion that i think is personal, for me as a computer science master student, and from real facts and tests with my two machines,which both are 64 bit, and with different arch Ubuntu installs, i see more performance and less compatibility with apps, that's the truth, but it is vanishing with time, as apps are developed to support 64 bit arch natively, so i really doubt those statistics, sorry – younes Nov 26 '14 at 00:54
  • The push for 64 bit architecture came out of the need to address huge amounts of memory on big data servers. It comes at a price though: system-wide memory bloat. If you can afford to have all your applications take up between 1.5 to 2 times as much memory, then yes, you will benefit from x64. As for who's taking it personally, citing opinions instead of facts it's pretty clear. – lemonsqueeze Nov 26 '14 at 20:42
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You might want to check the cpu type (changing to 64 bit is a pain after setting up, just saying), but I'd get the latest version if you don't feel you are going to leave it for a year and expect it to work just fine. 14.04 is an extended support release, while 14.10 is a normal release that receives a (don't worry, completely in-system) update every 6 months to the next version. For your system you should be able to run ubuntu quite smoothly. It won't make running a large website on it possible, but you won't get lag or anything. Also, if you choose to use ntfs you should be able to simply not format the drive and keep your files, but you can also just install ubuntu to a different partition and keep the ntfs partition from windows as storage until you transfer everything over to the linux partition. Comment if you need help.

P.S. So long as the dongle is a usb one and acts like a usb based tethering system it should work out of the box just fine :)

sbergeron
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How much storage do you have, and to spare?

eg. 250GB HDD, still has 100GB unused

You would be better to do a dual install (Ubuntu alongside Windows, and your existing files), but that depends on how large the drive and how much you have stored on it.

Before doing anything, make sure you have a complete backup.

You should use Ubuntu 14.04 LTS 32-bit.

For a three year old Laptop (with an Intel Celeron), you need to use 32-bit. There were multiple issues (some still outstanding) with both BIOS and Intel graphics 64-bit graphics drivers. Even with 3GB RAM, you aren't really going to get any increased performance with 64-bit and an Intel Celeron processor.

There should no specific issues for Wi-Fi/3G that can not be addressed.

david6
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