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[tickmike]

I'm going to get this laptop soon for my daughter and she says she wants PCLinux OS on it  8).

Now the laptop will have vista or w7 on it when we buy it.

My problem is for the warranty I will have to have or be able to put back on what operating system that it came with if we send it back . 

1 .. So do I ghost the hard disk to a DVD ?, so I could ghost it back (but if the laptop does not work I could not do that !  )

2 .. Compress W7 partition so I can get Linux on the rest of the disk, it's a 250GB Hdd.

3 .. or what ?.

I was going to have either XP or W7 as a virtual computer on it.

[oldfogy]

Well that solves that problem.
http://forum.kitz.co.uk/index.php/topic,6187.msg135440.html#msg135440

***********

Yes just ghost the HDD onto CD/DVD.

Most images cloned to CD/DVD are usually bootable, so if the system does not boot, then it still does not matter.

[geep]

Hi,
I've no experience of 1/.

If you do 2/ then think about how you'll boot it.
Presumably grub. Which I assume will overwrite the existing MBR.
If the PC stays running then it's easy enough to put the MBR back using Vista/Win7 Recovery console.
But if it breaks then you won't be able to restore the original MBR nor delete the Linux partition.

I had bad experience trying to get Vista to boot via grub in a multi-boot virtual machine.
XP, Win7 RC and Linux were all fine. But Vista wouldn't play with grub, but ran OK on its own.
As the only Vista that I've got is a Dell laptop's Vista recovery disk perhaps I shouldn't be surprised.
My real PC is multi-boot XP + Slackware Linuxes, and I'm about to add Win7 on its own disk.

or what... what about PCLinux OS in a virtual machine under Win7.
I use both VirtualBox 3.0.12 and VMWare Player 3 (on Linux host) and they both run Linux guests OK.
At the moment I marginally prefer VirtualBox.
Both virtual machines now handle sound and USB OK in my experience. And the speed is not bad.
A gotcha is that neither claim to support PCLinux.
But they don't support my Slackware either, and it runs OK. Niggles I fixed myself.
If the laptop has got a reasonable dual-core processor it should be OK. Don't forget 2Gb RAM.

Cheers,
Peter

PS - Your daughter wants Linux. Wow!

[HPsauce]

Most systems will come with one of the following:
1. A reinstall CD/DVD
2. A hidden partition enabling you to do a "factory reset"
3. A utility to create #1

[mr_chris]

Maybe Microsoft should try to appeal to the younger generation and get Steve Ballmer to do a sexy marketing photoshoots...

Not a new idea... check out Bill Gates back in 1983

Wish I'd not said that - I now have a frightening image in my head of Steve Ballmer draped over a desk whispering sweet nothings to a Windows 7 DVD I wish it would go away!!!


(related joke)

[tickmike]

Well that solves that problem.

  I should have put a link  You can probably see why I want a disk now.

Yes just ghost the HDD onto CD/DVD.

Most images cloned to CD/DVD are usually bootable, so if the system does not boot, then it still does not matter.   

   

@ geep   re "what about PCLinux OS in a virtual machine under Win7"  No thanks, would still have to have all the defenses in place to keep the cr@p off W7.

@ mr_chris     "Apple Mac in the background of the first pic" I have one of those in the roof .

[oldfogy]

You can probably see why I want a disk now.

See comment on previous post.

[poppy]

Having had a telephone call from a Dell agent just yesterday, I would think carefully before doing anything to the laptop.
My Dell came preinstalled with Vista Business. I bought a genuine pre-ordered W7 disk, installed it and after a week or so began having problems with the result that it wouldn't boot - not even from the disk. No SR, nothing.
Won't go into details 'cos it's a bit long-winded and not relevant, but I have got it reformatted now (this was not easy at all and had to use Gparted) but although the chap from Dell was very helpful and pleasant, he made it quite clear that the warranty covered Vista Business only.
I am not really enamoured of W7 and am going to put it back to how it was. They have kindly sent me all the relevant instructions.
If I were you I would set it up as a dual-boot then you could reset the mbr and fairly quickly delete the partition without anyone being any the wiser.

[tickmike]

chap from Dell was very helpful and pleasant, he made it quite clear that the warranty covered Vista Business only.
 

 

If I were you I would set it up as a dual-boot then you could reset the mbr and fairly quickly delete the partition without anyone being any the wiser.

Yes I think that's the way I will go.

Edit 1.. I'm going to take a look at the Acer web site to look at there warranty details.

Edit 2... from the Acer web site.
Installation Of An Operating System Not Shipped With The System
Q.. Can I install a version of an operating system that did not ship with the system?

A.. We cannot recommend or support the installation of an operating system other than that shipped on the system.
Support is available only for the shipping operating system.

[oldfogy]

Not being nasty, but most, if not all of the above is irrelevant because your warranty covers hardware not software problems.
Any software problems are the responsibility of the respective software company.

Formatting or partitioning the HDD will not void the warranty.

[poppy]

Oldfogy - you are probably a lot more experienced with computers than the average person.
I am not and when my lappy started playing up I actually didn't know whether it was one or t'other and neither did Dell when I talked to them on the Chat Line.
The problem turned out to be a software one (fairly obscure and still don't know why it happened) but believe me when you are in this situation it is quite stressful enough and you don't want the hassle of trying to  transfer an image back to the computer (which will be out of date anyway) to try to fulfill the warranty obligations.
These companies are often very unhelpful when you have done something different to the computer's native setup.
I stand by what I advised - keep the Windows partition, stick a free AV on it and boot up once a week to update it and there shouldn't be too much of a problem.
This is what I did on my Fujitsu, keeping Vista light (OS only - no additional software). I recently sold the lappy and it was a few minutes job to remove Ubuntu and create a blank partition for the new owner.

[HPsauce]

Any software problems are the responsibility of the respective software company.

Sorry, but that is wrong.

If you buy a PC from Dell it will most likely come with an "OEM" version operating system which Dell themselves must support.

[geep]

If I were you I would set it up as a dual-boot then you could reset the mbr and fairly quickly delete the partition without anyone being any the wiser.
Yes I think that's the way I will go.

I'd go with that too. It's a pretty clean solution. Let us know how you get on.
Cheers,
Peter

[oldfogy]

These companies are often very unhelpful when you have done something different to the computer's native setup.

That's usually because the scripts they work from would not then cover the software problem that you/we may be experiencing.

********************

I think I may not have expressed my earlier comment correctly.

What I was trying to say was that if the PC needed to be sent back for a "Hardware or damage repair", then it would be irrelevant what software was installed.

Although yes, I would agree that the original supplier need not be helpful if a software problem is being caused by software they have not supplied.
But they would still have some form of commitment, otherwise you would not be able to install any additional software other than that supplied/installed when purchased without voiding the warranty.

As for the Dual-boot recommendation, then yes I would recommend that 100% (hence my own dual-boot systems)

[tickmike]

I contacted Acer ( the manufacture of the laptop we are getting).

I asked what would happen if I installed a different OS on it.

Hello, Thank you for contacting Acer.

Regarding your enquiry,
No it won't validate your warranty.  Any hardware issues will still be covered under the warranty but any software related issues will not be.
You can dual boot if you want.  If you have to send it into the repair centre you don't have to re-install the original OS as we will be able to establish if the fault is software related or not.  Hardware faults will be repaired and the machine sent back with whatever OS setup you had on it when you sent it in.
 
Regards

Acer Technical Support Team