Installing Zorin Lite on an old laptop

Good day everybody. I am hoping that somebody can help me. I have recently replaced Windows 10 with Zorin on my desktop and I am so impressed that I thought that I would try Zorin Lite on my antiquated laptop. My laptop seems to fit as far as specifications go but I have a problem. The laptop has Windows XP on at the moment and it will not connect to the internet. So I have downloaded Zorin Lite 15.1-32 bit onto my desktop and have tried with multiple versions of balena Etcher to make a bootable USB but to no avail. I searched the internet for a solution and learned that Universal USB installer might work so I tried that. The program runs but it will not make a bootable USB. Balena etcher will extract the files but it will not open and run on my desktop and I don't know why. I had no problems converting my desktop to Zorin from windows 10 so I don't know what I am doing wrong. I was hoping that with Zorin Lite on my laptop it would then connect to the internet. I am very old and not computer savvy so I am hoping that there are some kind people on this forum who can lead me through this step by step and treat me as a dummy. Thanks in advance to all. Best regards Patrick

I use Etcher, and I had to extract it before using it. It also takes a minute to open. I don't currently have it on my system, but as I recall, when you extract it, you get two results. Clicking on one of them will open it. I always move that thingy to my desktop for convenience.

Hello mdiemer,
Thank you for your reply. I have the Etcher zip on my desktop and when I extract it I only get one result and It will not open and run. I have given it some time and still nothing. It extracts instantly to my desktop and as I said in my post I have tried several different versions of it and I get the same result each time. I hope that somebody has a solution as I really would like to try Zorin Lite on my laptop.
Thanks again and all the best.

I have little trust in the Etchers... when I want to install on OS, I burn it to disk, first. Then I boot from disk in the optical drive. It has never failed. USB installations, however, always seem to be hit and miss.

If you have Windows on a computer, try this:

https://free-iso-burner.en.softonic.com

Thank you Aravisian. I appreciate your assistance. How do I burn Zorin Lite to a disk so that is bootable? Please note that you are dealing with a dummy and I need step by step instructions. If you have the time I would be very glad to receive complete instructions from you.

To mdiemer, I will download the iso burner when I am able to use a computer with windows on it and let you know what happens. Thank you for the suggestion, your assistance is greatly appreciated.
Kind regards to you both.

Patrick123 wrote:Thank you Aravisian. I appreciate your assistance. How do I burn Zorin Lite to a disk so that is bootable? Please note that you are dealing with a dummy and I need step by step instructions. If you have the time I would be very glad to receive complete instructions from you.

To mdiemer, I will download the iso burner when I am able to use a computer with windows on it and let you know what happens. Thank you for the suggestion, your assistance is greatly appreciated.
Kind regards to you both.

Patrick, on Zorin 15 core right click the .iso file and select "burn to disk." Or maybe it is "Burn image to disk." I cannot remember off the top of my head how it words it.
Ensure you have a Blank dvd in your Optical drive.
That should open Brasero.
When it does, on the left pane of the window that opens, you should see an option for "Burn Image" near the bottom.
Select that, then navigate to your downloaded copy of Zorin 15 Lite and select that as your .iso to be burned.
Select 'burn'- what makes it bootable is already included.

On your other older computer, if you are running Windows on it, you will need to disable Secure Boot and Fast Boot. You MAY need to enable Legacy mode in your BIOS before booting Zorin, But I would suggest trying the install disk first.
Insert the disk, and boot, then hit F12 or F10 or F8- whatever that manufacturers toggle is for going to Boot Order from boot up and select the optical drive as first in the boot order.

Zorin 15 Lite uses the XFCE desktop instead of Gnome Destop as Core does. XFCE is much more customizable. But the first time you use it, you may find yourself wondering what settings are where. You also will notice that they are MUCH easier to find than in Gnome. IF you run into any confusion, please ask.
There is a big difference between being a dummy and working with something new and unfamiliar.

Aravisian,
Thank you for the clear and concise instructions. This is what I needed. I will do it now and report back on my progress.
Best regards
Patrick

Aravisian,
When I right click on the Zorin Lite iso file there is a line that says "write to disk" and away it went. It took a few minutes to burn the disk and to finish it off but total success.
I selected boot from CD on my laptop (F2) in my case and it is busy installing Zorin now as I type.
I cannot thank you enough for all the assistance that you have given me with my problem. You are obviously a very patient and knowledgeable person.
I wish you all the best and I sincerely hope that I don't have to bother you and the other forum members who have assisted me again.
Be well
Best regards
Patrick

Patrick123 wrote:Aravisian,
When I right click on the Zorin Lite iso file there is a line that says "write to disk" and away it went. It took a few minutes to burn the disk and to finish it off but total success.
I selected boot from CD on my laptop (F2) in my case and it is busy installing Zorin now as I type.
I cannot thank you enough for all the assistance that you have given me with my problem. You are obviously a very patient and knowledgeable person.
I wish you all the best and I sincerely hope that I don't have to bother you and the other forum members who have assisted me again.
Be well
Best regards
Patrick

If anyone here was in a position to be bothered, we wouldn't be here, at all. The whole reason many of us are here posting is to provide help.
I left MS. Windows on XP just about a year ago. Yep, I clung to XP 'til the bitter end. I started out on Zorin where Zorinantwerp and Swarfendor patiently helped get me sorted out.
I would not say I am knowledgeable, patient, kind - What I am is a person who likes to learn. Helping others helps me to learn. I like to encourage it when I see other people willing to learn instead of just Acceptance of what they assume. It helps validate my own existence.
The learning process can be a bumpy road. So, be sure to scoot over into this lane where some of us may be able to smooth the path a bit.

I agree!

You see, helping each other is just the right thing to do. I even taught Aravisian about a few things myself, and he has taught me things as well. Heck, look at may SIG, it says it all.

Now, it is true that in order to be a good teacher, you most certainly have to have patience. I myself find that I have trouble with that one, sometimes I can lose patience, but I do the best I can.

I remember when I used to burn CD's and DVD's, those were interesting times. You should know I got about 20-coasters in my home, great for putting drinks on, and they are a constant reminder of what I did wrong lol. You know, back in the early 2000's, CD drives got spinning so fast, up to 52X, that there were reports of disks shattering. LOL - So the future drives were lowered back down to like 24X.

The answer was USB flash drives, which soon took over. And now we have portable SSD drives with read speeds that far exceed the old CD optical drives. Its amazing how quickly technology evolves.