migrating from WIN7 to Mandrake linux and NTFS to EXT3 and WITHOUT BACKUPING
 

hi experts,
Im currently using windows 7 and I want to shift for Linux.
So i thought to start from Mandrake-free.
My current filesystem is NTFS which full of windows extension documents.
Those capacity is almost 200GB.
but im not in a position to backup everything.
i got to know from forums that linux perform well in ext3 file system.
so i wish to go for ext3.
is there any ways to shift FROM,
win7 TO mandrake AND
ntfs TO ext3 WITHOUT
BACKING UP CURRENT DOCUMENTS
ASWEL AS WITHOUT LOOSING ANY OF MY WINDOWS BASED DOCUMENTS.???
and i got to know that in a single harddrive(eg 250GB),
Its not good for the harddisk to have different type of partitions
(eg 50gb of ext3 and 200gb of NTFS).
if i used like this will my harddisk got crashed??
because this happened to me 4 years ago when i was trying to install winXp(in ntfs) and Redhat(in ext2) in the same hardisk. i was working initially. but was in 2 days that HDD got crashed.
please help me to achieve necessary answers and informations

Not true--you can have any mix of partition types that you want.

There is ALWAYS a way to make backups--external HD, CD, DVD, Online Services, etc.
http://www.google.com/search?q=onlin...ient=firefox-a

If your data is valuable, then make backups---regardless of whether you are going to install Linux.

To install Linux and setup dual-boot, the normal steps are:

• backup
• resize the windows partition to create at least 20GB of free space.
• install Linux

<<The typical Linux installer will automatically sense that Windows is there and set up the dual-boot>>

Another good precaution is to be sure you have a Windows install CD so that you can re-install the Windows bootloader if necessary.

thank you pixel.
I have tried with knoppix first. Wow its amazing. works fine.
can open all microsoft extension files and other multimedia files.
But i want to install mandriva 2010.
It also has wonder ful GUI tools to partitioning etc.
thanks to linux team. Now im started promoting linux via FB.
is their ways to run .exe files in mandriva?
eg: Adobe Photoshop cs4. Ahead nere 8,etc

Yes by using wine you can install and run some windows applications. if you go to winehq's website they have a database with all software that will run and any problems you might have.

thank you pixel
i have downloaded folling packages,
tar.bz
tar.bz2
rpm
last one can be instll easily by opening through "software installer" in mandriva.
but first and second hard to install.
i tried through following command sequence
./configure>make>make install

but those packages r still remaining as folders and files.
how can instal these software packages?