It's basically a method that allows you to run any operating system virtually, thus allowing developers to test new software or to have a "clean" environment to test in. The idea I had was for you to install virtualbox to allow you to play with Ubuntu or anyother linux distro now, before you go ahead and install it on the server. You don't need to this, but it might be worth having a look. Off chance, did you pick it up for £30? Folding on it will be dog slow even for a 2P capable machine, and if it from where I think it is, it's only got one CPU installed
Virtual machines are a very cool thing to use to test software, and to run several os's on one physical machine. For your purposes this is not something you need, but it is a viable possibility, and like Burnout says, you can install a virtual enviornment on your desktop now, install any OS you want on it (must be obtained seperately) and test settings and such. VMWare Player is another option for you to use. These programs are not complicated unless you want them to be, so you can get by without knowing so much, but of course a little reading is recommended if you decide to try. You can eventually run several OS's on a hypervisor on your server hardware and have them multi-purposed, but this is more advanced perhaps than what you are after today As Burnout says, virtual machines are an excellent tool to test software, new OS's and such. I first experienced Win 8 on a virtual machine installed on my old Vista setup. Didn't like it at the time so just deleted it and that was that. Win XP mode on Windows 7 also was a virtual environment used in Windows 7 with "pre-installed" XP on it.
mmmm ok more reading up I think for now it will be to setup folding on the server get it connected to the net an then some playing with it I guess but looking at Ubuntu desktop version it seems to accept more than one cpu...eg my server... but is the server version of the software still looking the same as the desktop version...it doesn't show any screen shots
The server versions is the bare bones command-line gubbinz with no GUI as it's not strictly needed as said servers are controlled remotely... The desktop versions is the above, but with a GUI... anything the server version can do the desktop version can do...
you'll probably have to do *some* prodding in the command line but most things can be done though a GUI
Not likely, installing Ubuntu is easier than Windows as most drivers are installed right off the bat. Ever since I converted over to running Ubuntu I've not looked back
The desktop version and server version of Ubuntu are actually the same thing - just one has no GUI by default and the installation process is designed for setting up a server, while the other is based around a GUI and is designed for a desktop. In the end both versions can look identical if the same software is installed on each. For a newcomer to Linux I would advise on the desktop version, since the GUI makes things much easier to understand. However, Linux doesn't compromise on allowing you to make the most of the command line, so don't be afraid to start a terminal and type some commands. As for variants of Ubuntu - since the default Ubuntu uses Unity it can be a bit sluggish on older hardware, or problematic with non-3D hardware (as pointed out earlier in this thread). Besides, I personally do not like Unity. My favourite desktop environment (this is the software that runs your whole desktop, including menus, windows etc.) is XFCE, which can be easily installed with the variant of Ubuntu called Xubuntu. Another popular variant is Linux Mint, with it's MATE desktop environment which is popular with people who liked GNOME2. In short - try out some distros in a virtual machine (using VirtualBox or other virtualisation software), and see which one you like best. Ubuntu is a good place to start, but there are thousands of others. Some may be more geared to advanced Linux users, such as Arch Linux (my personal favourite), but there are plenty for the newcomer.
I may still have my Windows Vista Ultimate 64bit Key, but not sure would have to check when I get home. It was installed that many times though that it requires a phone call each time you want to activate it though. If I still have the key I will drop it to you in a PM if your interested, and I am not interested in anything for it as I don't use it as I am on Windows 7 and won't be going back to Windows Vista at all for any reason, and if I ever do need to I can always use 1 of my MSDN keys.
