Idea #1968: make partitionning less anxious for new users during installation

102

Written by kaeso the 1 Mar 08 at 00:17. Category: Installation.
Related to: Nothing/Others. Status: New

Description

Partitionning hard disk is the most anxious moment for new users when they are installing Ubuntu. I have seen some users cancel installation because they didn't now how to set it up. Some of them where Windows power users. Notions as "mounting point" have no sense for them. The consequences of each choice are not obvious.

And then they say "I tried to install Ubuntu but it's too complicated for me, so I prefer stay with Windows for the moment"...

(Sorry for my bad english)

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Comments

Alexander wrote on the 1 Mar 08 at 01:04

There should be a threshold for installing Ubuntu. We don't want whiny users.

booljayj wrote on the 1 Mar 08 at 03:57

just add a "help" button that links to a page explaining the whole process. Problem solved, mostly.

kaeso wrote on the 1 Mar 08 at 12:44

Just add comments like "no data will be destroyed" or "you'll can modifiy this later" can also make a difference.

HDave wrote on the 4 Mar 08 at 14:30

This is sorely needed. New linux users coming to Ubuntu have NO IDEA what hd0, hd1, sdb2, etc. Plus the partition sizes are shown in bytes, not in human readable MB or GB. It was really nerve racking partitioning my first time because I could only assume that hd0 was my internal laptop harddrive!

benjavalero wrote on the 4 Mar 08 at 15:56

A good Help would be a good solution, explaing some concepts. This help already exists, so could appear in the desktop, like the "Install" icon, so the new user could be installing while is reading the help document.

kaeso wrote on the 8 Mar 08 at 00:46

Ok for a good help, but people don't want to spent too much time to understand concepts ; they just want to install Ubuntu. If the help file is too long or too technical, they'll abandon or do anything. Is it possible to explain things anyway ?

I like softwares which have a simple interface for frequent situations, and a button for advanced configurations. For instance, the most frequent situation may be one HD with one partition, which will be divided to install Ubuntu. Nothing technical in this, except maybe the size of the new partition.

Such frequent situations are not so many : the installer can detect them and suggest the most simple (and cautious) configuration(s) in each case. Advanced users will always be able to do as they wish.

jerieljan wrote on the 25 Mar 08 at 13:37

an informative walkthrough-ish way on the partitioning part should be implemented, if not then say, a wizard approach.

oblique63 wrote on the 14 May 08 at 21:26

I think something like kaeso's comment along with a Mandriva-like partitioner would go a long way in solving this problem... Im not sure why Ubuntu still does this the way it does honestly, its definitely not ideal for 'human beings'...

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