Ok, I have tried installing Ubuntu before, it did fine and worked. The problem was I wanted to remove windows, I have some kind of weird OCD thing where I just want one operating system on my computer.

I removed the Linux eventually because I couldn't get windows off and just leave Linux ( I don't have a CD-ROM drive so I cant install it that way)

After that I boot and now I see Windows and Ubuntu, the thing is I uninstalled Ubuntu but it still says its there. When I try to go into it it gives me an error. I guess its just still partitioned or something?

Anyways I wanted to have Ubuntu on this computer and im tired of Windows so I go to install Ubuntu again this time using my IPOD. For some reason I cant get my computer to boot from my IPOD.

Once I realise I cant get my IPOD to boot Linux I try to install it via Windows again. I get it installed and now I see Windows, and 2 Ubuntu's for my OS choices.

The really crazy thing is this second Ubuntu didnt even install right, it gives me an error when I try to load it up.

What I want to know is there some kind of way to install Linux and then delete all those partitions and use that space for one Linux install without using any CD's, floppys or my IPOD (Unless someone can explain why I cannot boot from it).

How did you install Ubuntu the first time?

Whatever install method you have used, if you have got your Ubuntu to boot, theres nothing much left to remove windows.
Use fdisk -l to locate the windows partitions.
And then format the partitions using mke2fs command to make it linux partitions.

Ok a few things come to mind:

1. Ubuntu not there but boot loader still sees it: you installed GRUB (pretty much everyone but Slackware uses GRUB now AFAIK, one more reason I'm a Slacker into the MBR. You'll either have to get windoze to re-install its boot loader or re-install Ubuntu so you can modify GRUB's parameters.

2. Ditching windoze entirely is easy: delete all the other partitions. On my laptop, I eventually just wiped the entire hard drive and made a fresh install, as it came with 3 partitions: a rescue containing the same Vista you'd see on a double-density install DVD (10 GB), a "windows" partition that Vista ran on, and a "data" partition that was empty; the last 2 partitions each were around 65 GB and together took up the remainder of the hard drive. Since this didn't work for me and I didn't want to run Vista ever again, I just wiped it and created 4 new partitions: /dev/sda1 for /, 2 for /usr, 3 for /home, and 4 for swap, all ext3 so I can resize with parted.

3. Despite hearing that Ubuntu is supposed to be "sooooo easy", I've had nothing but problems with it (or anything else Debian based). One more reason I love Slackware: it just works with everything but certain hardware, and that's fairly easy to fix if you know what you're doing. One of my least favorite things is its installer: at an installfest co-sponsored by our LUG and an Ubuntu group, I discovered that Ubuntu seemed to insist on re-partitioning the hard drive, possibly wiping Vista in the process (I wasn't ready to wipe it yet because I wasn't 100% sure of my backups--but that's another story). This was at the Hardy Heron release, and both the main and advanced versions were like this. Later, when I tried to do it myself, I also discovered it's very difficult to go root. After this, I got so mad I resorted to calling it "too windowsy" on our LUG mailing list!

So a suggestion: if you're not too hooked on the windows thing, try installing something besides Ubuntu or anything else based on Debian.

Disclaimer: I'm a 14 year Slackware user and got my first UNIX experience at college on BSD 4.3. I was gonna install FreeBSD 7 on my laptop, but they don't get along (read: won't boot, kernel oopses as soon as it loads). Maybe on my next machine...

BTW, all my other machines have either been dual boot (long ago) or never came with windows (usually missing the hard drive, even). This laptop was the most difficult install I've ever had, but it appears nearly everything works now. So if I can do it, so can you!

Do I smell someone trying to get a Distro Flamewar going?

Then it doesn't work with everything!

Not everyone knows what they are doing, so there is a learning curve. (with any OS)

I'm sorry you had problems with your installation of Ubuntu, but that doesn't make it a bad Distro. Slackware has its problems (but that doesn't make IT a bad Distro) Ubuntu and the people that work putting it together have done a very good job at getting people looking into using linux.
Point being, there is not one distro that is good for everyone each have their strengths and weaknesses, if you don't like one, move on. Flamewars get no one anywhere.

Sorry, I didn't mean to start a flamewar. I guess it's just Slackware gets no respect and Ubuntu, while deserving what you said at the end there about getting people into Linux that otherwise wouldn't, has just been a pain for me even to try (though I still got further than plain old Debian). So my apologies. Let's bash M$ and Apple some more instead!

Mike

Yup, download an iso, extract the vmlinuz and initrd files and put them into your boot directory, then put a reference to them in your bootloader, reboot and select the reference to the iso files and the installer should start up. Then simply select "install from hard drive". This procedure may not work with all distros but it certainly does with older versions of Ubuntu and with recent ones of Fedora. Debian too I seem to remember. I think google can fill in the details.

Not a problem I can empathize with you, I had the hardest time with mepis (never did get it working) and it can get frustrating.

Not to worry Slackware is in a leage all it's own, FYI it was the only distro I could get to run on my pI laptop. Besides it, if I'm remembering right is the oldest linux distro, that says it all.
Hmm thats odd Debian has been one of the easiest distro's for >me< to work with, but that's just me. I do have Ubuntu on one of my systems but I use Debian or Gentoo more than it.

Naa I'm not taking the bait

did you say you got your computer to boot from your ipod?!! can you please explain you you did it?

I'm assuming he just configured it to act like an external hard drive or USB stick rather than a video recorder. In theory, I should be able to do the same thing with my RAZR cell phone. (Wow, I should try that...)

Mike

I don't see how, you've got to get it on there somehow from an external src.
In theory you could do a network install, but only if you've got a cxn to another Linux system.