My OS is Windows 7 64 bit on an HP PC with one tb HD & 2gb ram. Can I install a linux program in this and which one would be the best?

Hi there,

my condolences on Windows 7.

I have no idea what program you want to install. There is a solution called WINE that allows running Windows programs in Linux, but I don't know anything the other way round. But you might consider installing VirtualBox (or some other virtualization), then install a Linux distro of your choice inside a VM. Then you can install and run nearly any Linux software.

[X] Doc CPU

A 'Linux program' is not going to run on windows and a default windows installation won't even be able to read a Linux filesystem. I'm wondering if you actually meant 'Linux operating system'? If you want to install it inside windows, the suggestion above for virtual software will work. If you want to actually install a Linux operating system separately from windows, you should be able to install pretty much any Linux with the hardware you have.

There's no way for us to recommend a particular distribution of Linux (there are hundreds available) for you as you forgot to indicate the primary use of the system. You might try googling 'Linux chooser' which will give you some sites where you answer a few questions and they make a recommendation. The options are limited. Go to distrowatch.com and you will find info on a large number of distributions with links to all of them.

VirtualBox works very nicely on Win7. With it, you can test out various distros and decide which ones you like by installing them as virtual machines using VirtualBox.

For starters, I think Mint would be a good choice. Of course, I started with Slackware and have never regretted it.

You could also take a look at Wubi or Mint4Win, but I think VirtualBox is a better option.

To get linux to run you have a few choices.

One is to use a very special linux that runs alongside windows. Not sure how advanced it is but still a choice. Co-linux has been around for a while.

Another option that is common is to install a free virtual machine. There you run linux within a software computer at the same time as windows.

Another is a dual boot. Install some linux into your computer and reboot to one or the other. Be warned that this is not a newbie task.

Another is to use a special way called wubi. It is a bit more safe than a dual boot but it looks like a dual boot. Some people love it and it will fail on odd installs.

You can easily make a live usb or just do with a live cd/dvd/usb.

You can boot to linux over the network by gpxe or pxe. See www.netboot.me or slitax boot or even fedora ought to be out there still.

There is a web based virtual machine from JPC that runs a computer within a web page.

If you just want to TRY Linux, then the better solution for you would be to test it out from a LiveCD. If you were savvy enough to need virtualization, you would have already known about it and implemented it without asking here. So based on that (assumption on my part), a LiveCD would be a better way for you to test the waters with Linux. Nothing to install. Just stick the CD (or DVD as it may be) into your drive and reboot your computer. Bingo! Instant Linux. However, because it will be running off of a CD/DVD and not a harddisk, it will be a lot slower. So don't try to judge performance from a LiveCD. But you can judge features.