NeutralAxis

Have you ever wanted to experiment with a different OS but were afraid to make the commitment?  Virtualization software is your answer.  Its easy, and free.  With it, you can install any OS (except MacOS) inside a working copy of any other OS. 

I’ve helped several other people install Ubuntu inside Windows XP and Vista using Sun’s free Virtualbox software, so several months ago I began a post detailing the procedure.  I got sidetracked and the post never made it past the draft stage.  Today, Gizmodo.com posted just such an article, and its better than mine ever contemplated being.  Here’s an excerpt and a link to the original.

“The word virtualization conjures images of the dank nerd lairs [...]. Today, though, virtualization has become mainstream: modern software makes running virtualized operating systems amazingly easy, and undeniably useful.

“Intimidating erminology aside, here’s what desktop virtualization means today: You can run just about any OS, Mac OS X excluded, inside any other OS. Ubuntu in Mac OS? Sure. Windows 7 within Windows XP? Why not? Windows ME within Snow Leopard? Nobody’s going to stop you, I guess! And these aren’t patchy, half-assed experiments we’re talking about here—these are fully-functioning installations that’ll connect to USB peripherals, access the internet, share files with your host OS, and run almost any software, short of 3D games. You can set up as many of these things as you want, and delete them in a matter of seconds. It’s pretty great, is what I’m trying to say.

“Best of all, virtualization is now something you can try—and stick with—for free, thanks to software like Sun’s VirtualBox. It’s a free download on any platform, and it does its job spectacularly. Here’s how to get started.