If you like

using Ubuntu

but want to have the option of using your other operating system, you can always

create a dual boot system

. This will involve

partitioning your hard drive

and you should probably back up your data, but once the process is complete, you'll be able to

boot into Ubuntu

or your other OS whenever you want.

If you want to

try Ubuntu

without actually committing part of your hard drive to it, you can do so by

creating a LiveCD or DVD

. These discs act sort of like

boot discs

and allow you to run Ubuntu on your computer without using system resources. We'll show you

how to create a LiveCD

or DVD in this episode.

It's important to

create a Windows system repair disk

just in case something goes horribly wrong with your computer. The Windows system repair disk will help you get your computer back up and running should disaster strike.

We all know how important it is to keep your computer backed up. One way to do that is to

create a disk image

of your machine. This

backs up your operating system, programs, and data

. This week, Doc takes a look at three of his all-time favorite disc imaging programs.

If you've heard a little bit about Linux then you might have been curious to try a

Linux distribution

yourself. In this series we'll give you an

introduction to Ubuntu

, a free

Linux-based operating system

that gives you multiple installation options. We'll walk you through

how to install Ubuntu

using each of those, including using

LiveCD or DVDs

,

running a persistent image

, and

dual booting

.