Good morning from my Robotics Blog! This is Shadow_8472, and today I am talking my father through his first Linux install. Let’s get started!
Installing Linux isn’t as difficult as people think it is. If you ask me, the hardest part is the research. You need at least a little experience to know what your priorities in an operating system are or even could be, but you won’t get that experience without exploring the possibility space.
For this project, I’ll be helping my father install Linux. However, he will be the one at the controls and I’ll be “over the phone” from the same room, telling him what hardware to use, what software to download, and what commands to enter.
Step 1: Hardware
Linux doesn’t run in thin air, but it can run on otherwise low-spec hardware. For today’s project, we’ll be installing over my first Linux install — from before I really knew what I was doing — the hard disk drive originally from ButtonMash, my server/phototrunk workstation. For the rest of the system, we will be using his existing computer, ButtonMash’s hardware sister. I’ve selected one of my thumb drives to host our install media.
Very important: back up your data. THE LINUX INSTALLATION PROCESS DESTROYS ANY DATA IT TOUCHES. The USB we’re using is just outdated installation media for a previous system. I started talking my father through the backup process, going through a number of commands, but when I remembered an existing backup, I went and laid eyes on it before giving the final clearance to overwrite it.
This section went well, but I did have to fetch an extra SATA cable to install the drive with.
Step 2: Installation Media
Linux is often installed from some sort of installation media, usually a USB stick. Normally, I’d use the dd command and a setup where I won’t nuke a different drive by accident. I’d rather not risk an accident, though, so I spent a while searching for some sort of Linux USB flasher.
Turns out installing Linux from Windows is a well-documented rite of passage, and dd is what you’re expected to use when jumping from Linux to another Linux. I eventually dropped a question in the Engineer Man Discord and user localhost recommended Belena etcher, so we’ll be trying that. I chose Debian to install because I’ve had some success with it in the past, but to keep things fresh, I’ll be moving him to the testing branch.
Belena etcher came without any sort of checksum, but Debian does. When given, always make sure to look for a checksum — especially for core applications like operating systems.
This section went smoothly aside from an overstuffed Downloads directory providing us with plenty of distractions and command line practice. Belena Etcher came in a .zip file, so we created a decompression chamber my father dubbed his Bombshelter. Once we were ready, Belena Etcher made it clear which drives were which as advertised. The only thing remotely worth complaining about was their self-promotion for premium and other products. Of note: they are multiplatform; if you’re looking to switch from Windows, they are a viable choice.
Step 3: Installation
Now for the main event and my father’s first important choice. Dual booting. When multiple bootable drives are present, the BIOS select which drive to boot and the bootloader on that drive can provide a list of operating systems to boot into. When I wanted to set up one of my computers for multiboot, I wasn’t able to configure it manually after physically disconnecting all drives I care about.
Debian 11 booted straight into an installer, where the graphical installation process mostly cared for itself. Overall, though, this step was a little harder. Names are hard, even for a computer. I know about Logical Volume Management (LVM), but not enough to recommend it for this particular project. When we tried it, it was looking to mess with the existing disk.
We had the option in terms of desktop environment to install, but as I plan on taking him to a place where he can further customize it, it doesn’t matter so much. I nudged him in the direction of trying KDE in the name of exposing him to something new, even though it’s typically a little heavier.
We had a some trouble getting the computer to boot into Debian proper. I suspected it was the GRUB list only outputing to VGA until we pulled up a BIOS level boot list and forced it to boot to the new Debian drive and the GRUB menu offered access to Debian or Mint.
As I feared, KDE was a bit slow.
Takeaway
Congratulations to my father on his first Linux install. I had more planned, but we simply ran out of time. I expect a part 2 to follow shortly where we’ll focus on getting from a point-and-click environment to something he can feel more comfortable in.
Final Question
Have you ever tried to pass on a skill to another person?