Hello, I have a laptop with no operating system and I want to put the Arch OS on it. How do I go about doing that? Do I just burn the ISO on a CD and stick it in while I boot up?

Thank you...

Short answer - yes.

Arch it not a "plug it in and forget it" distro. It has excellent doco, and anyone using Arch had better be prepared to read it.

Read this:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Beginners27_guide

+1

Do not use random blog guides or YouTube videos -- they are *all* outdated and/or error-ridden.

Warning: If you are new to Linux, I highly suggest that you start off with a more "newbie-friendly" disro, like Mint. Arch takes a minimalistic approach to the install: It gives you a bare-bones system, but you only have to install what you want to.

However, if you feel somewhat experienced or just want to try it anyway (again, I highly recommend against it), start off by following the beginners guide linked above. It gives clear step-by-step instructions on what needs to be done, as well as explaining what's happening and what options are avaliable.

When I first installed Arch, I watched several video turorials to get it installed. I think that the video tutorials are acceptable if you keep in mind that they are outdated and still keep an eye on the Beginner's Guide. At least you can still see the general concept of what goes on. But don't just type the commands in the video word-for-word, put some thought into it.

Good luck!

I use Arch linux at home and I LOVE it. I'm attaching my notes on how I installed linux on my machine. Make changes where necessary.

Hope it is helpful to you.

Attached Files

Arch_Installation.pdf (60.4 KB, 30 views)

marshen,
if you need to ask that question, then arch is probably not for you.

apart from that, archlinux strives to provide their users with all needed documentation on their website / wiki.
but it also expects you to read all of it, think about it, and act.
there's also no shame in using the beginners' guide.
and if it says "you probably need to do this and that", then that's what it means. when it links to some other wiki page for details, then that's what you should click on, read, think act, before returning to the original instructions. it doesn't mean "ok, i can skip this for later".

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Arch is very good, and the documentation is the best for any distro, in my opinion, but it's not a beginner's distro.

1. It has no installer. You need to install manually, by typing in commands, which you need to have printed out ready!

2. It is what we call bleeding-edge: you get the latest versions of things as fast as they appear, and sometimes they turn out to be not quite ready. Occasionally after an update an Arch user needs to know how to clean up the mess and put things back as they were!

If you want Arch for a particular reason, Bridge is an installation disk which sets up Arch for you in minutes rather than hours. Then there's Manjaro, which is based on Arch, but is a little more cautious in updating. If you just want a rolling-release distro, you can't beat PCLinuxOS, in my opinion.

marshen,

There is a thread on "Rolling Releases" which involves Arch on here:

http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...ed-4175541627/

I have no idea whether your laptop is old or relatively new, but I would second the above advice and choose an easier distro such as Zorin OS9 (or the Lite version), Linux Mint MATE (or Manjaro if you fancy an Arch derivative).

Pure Arch is definitely not for beginners.

The Arch live ISO has elinks included so you can refer to the installation guide using that in TTY2 & type the commands in TTY1

Which assumes that you know that and are happy using elinks! As I said, not for the beginner.

I think that you should install debian which is quite newbie friendly. I just helped my grandson install Jessie yesterday, keep in mind he's only 7 & I can now have him istall without instructions. I may just have him install on video just to show you.

If you really want to try an Arch-based system with an easy setup, you could try Antergos. It's quite beginner-friendly to install and use.
http://www.antergos.com/

But keep reading the Arch Wiki, and keep in mind that it's still Arch Linux underneath it all.