[sf-lug] (forw) Re: SF-LUG meeting notes for Sunday 02022020

[Rick Moen]

Quoting Akkana Peck (akkana at shallowsky.com):

> Putting aside the discussion of why Virtualbox isn't working on
> Bobbie's machine, though that's certainly worth pursuing ... why not
> partition a machine with several root partitions, and actually
> install distros onto the hardware?

Because, in recent memory, Bobbie has had someone 'help' her with a
multiple boot setup with the result that not only did the bootloader get
all clobbered but her ultimate solution was then, IIRC, to blow away
everything.  (As you point out, that should not even remotely have been
necessary, but in my experience is exactly what happens when most users
get into that kind of trouble.)

Multiboot is an accident waiting to happen except in the hands of
(rare) methodical people who take great care to not step on its inherent
fragility -- and that is where the hypervisor/VM alternative steps
entirely around that pitfall.

Besides, it's always been really painful to see generations of newcomers
dual-boot their proprietary-OS machines, because, with no concurrent
operation of the two OSes possible, and with the major disruption of
productivity inherent in shutting down everything and rebooting to the
'other OS', you walk away knowing that after five or six forays into the
'other OS', it'll get forgotten, making the whole thing a waste of time.