On 21/02/2019 19:29, Bev Nicolson wrote:
So I thought I get going on installing Cinnamon Mint in this laptop. Plugged it in, got the dvd in but it just booted to Windows 7 instead. It knew the dvd was there and what was on it but that was as far as it went. How to I investigate why it's doing this and/or how do I get it to install Mint? Ta.
The new laptop probably has the new-fangled UEFI Bios thingy. There may be a Boot from CD option somewhere in the BIOS, but my laptop was setup o that I had to initiate it from Windows. Have a google for Make Windows boot from CD or similar. You have to do something like go into Control Panel (or System), then go to Recovery, then Boot from Recovery CD/DVD.
This causes the machine to reboot from the CD/DVD, but it doesn't have to be a recovery CD, it can be a Linux CD.
Before you proceed installing Linux.... Work out if you want to install in UEFI mode or traditional BIOS mode. Personally I wish I'd chosen traditional BIOS mode, as UEFI mode just seems to make things much more complicated. My main problem is I can't get my laptop to hibernate to disk which I used to use all the time. Do some research first before installing, or install and be prepared to reinstall if you made the wrong choice.
HTH
Steve