Ubuntu Linux, ubuntu desktop, Linux operating system, ubuntu guide

Introduction

In ubuntu one of the biggest problem which people face is installing Softwares/Packages without a working internet connection. Ubuntu’s default installation is very minimal and tries to be a zero-bloat distro.

Before getting started, you need to download all the packages on a computer running Linux. Even a system running in Live environment would suffice, but it would need around 1GB of RAM to accomplish it’s work properly.

Download the packages

The package installation work is actually a 2-step process. First, packages are downloaded and cached in /var/cache/apt/archives folder. Second, they are installed from this archived copy.

You can run a LiveCD of Ubuntu on that system or use it from inside an installed system. Consider the two options.

Live environment

Boot from LiveCD, fire up the package manager, select the packages you want to download and Hit Apply. Packages would be downloaded and installed too. Don’t worry, if they are installed(its temporary session).

From an installed system

If you are at your friend’s place, then instead of downloading and installing the packages, you would prefer to just download the required ones. For this follow the steps.

1. Open Package Manager
2. Select the packages to be downloaded
3. Hit Apply
4. It would ask “Apply the following changes”.
5. Select the “Download Packages Only” checkbox.
6. Click Apply and all the packages are only downloaded to the archive folder

Create the ISO

1. Next download and install the package “aptoncd“.
2. Open it, select Create.
3. APTonCD would search its local cached copy and list you down the package available.
4. Click on Burn
5. Choose the type of Medium,Destination of the image and filename of the iso.
6. Click on Apply.
7. After ISO has been made, it would ask you to Burn it to a CD. If you want to burn it, you are welcome, or you can even carry the ISO in your pen/flash drive.
8. If you don’t burnt the CD, then please copy the aptoncd.deb file from /var/cache/apt/archives to your pen drive along with that ISO.

Installing on your computer

Now we assume two situations,

• one is that you have burnt the ISO to a CD
• another is that you have copied the created ISO and the aptoncd.deb file to your flash drive.

From CD

Just put the CD in your drive, a new popup would show up notifying you that a CD with offline repository has been detected. Do you want to import it? Accept it to import the package index.

From APTonCD ISO

1. Install the aptoncd.deb file from your flash drive by double clicking on it.
2. After installation, open APTonCD from System> Administration> APTonCD
3. select Restore
4. Select the ISO which is to be restored
5. It would show you the list of packages which will be restored
6. Click Restore and everything would be restored, packages are copied back and the index is also imported

Installing Imported Packages

You just need to open the Package Manager and search for the packages which you need to install. Select it and Click Apply. All done.

If you want to install all the packages from the ISO , search for a metapackage and install it

Step 1 - Download the Ubuntu 7.10 Desktop ISO image, as per your your hardware architecture (i386 or amd64), from here

Step 2 – Burn the ISO image .

Step 3 - Insert or leave the CD in your CD/DVD-ROM device and reboot your computer. Hit enter when the boot screen appears and wait for it to load into memory.

Step 4 – When the desktop is fully loaded, double click the Install icon and follow the installer steps:

Select your language

This is the first step of the installer, where you must select your native language (default is English). This language will be used for the installer and it will also be the default language for your Ubuntu Linux (when the installation is over). Click the Forward button after you have selected your language.

The second screen will feature a map of the Earth with little red dots, so you can select your city and country. Upon the current selection of your location, the time for the final system will adjust accordingly. You can also select your current location from the drop down list situated at the bottom of the window (recommended). Click the Forward button after you have selected your location.

Select  your keyboard layout
On the third screen, you will be asked to select the keyboard layout that suits you best (default is U.S. English). You can also test your keyboard on the little text input field situated at the bottom of the window. Click the Forward button when you have finished with the keyboard configuration.

Hard disk partitioning

The hard disk partitioning is an easy task, Please select the option very careful when ever you have more than one operating system.  You have three options:

1. If you want to keep your existing operating system, select the first option: “Guided – resize the partition and use the freed space”.
2. If you want to delete your existing operating system, select the second option: “Guided – use entire disk”.
3. Manual is the third choice at this point and I strongly suggest you to use it ONLY if you are an expert on Linux partitioning.

Once you’ve reached a decision, click the Forward button.

Migrate Docs From Existing OS

This is the best part of the installer, as it will allow you to choose your existing Firefox bookmarks, wallpapers, favourites, mail, Messenger contacts. If you don’t have a Windows or other Ubuntu installation on your hard disk, then you will not see this screen so just click the Forward button to continue with the installation.

Who are you?

Here you must do exactly what the title of this step tells you to do. You must fill in some fields with your real name, the name you want to use to log in on your Ubuntu OS and the name of the computer (automatically generated). Once you have finished with this step, click the Forward button again (for the last time).

Finally Ready To Install

If you have successfully arrived at this point, then you are definitely ready for your new Ubuntu operating system. So, what are you waiting for? Click the Install button NOW!

Then we have to wait for Ubuntu 7.10 (Gusty Gibbon) operating system installation step

Step 5 – After approximately 8 minutes, a pop-up window will appear with two options:

1. Continue using the live CD
2. Restart now

Then Click  “Restart now” button, For access the Ubuntu operatig System. Enjoy and Feel the Difference.

Click here For Trouble Shooting the OS Installation Issue