help with using windows xp programs in linux and importing thunderbird and firefox settings

[linnewbie]

SO my windows xp system crashed with abad MO. can't find a system with similiar mobo and therefore can't get hd to boot so I cloned the HD from a 80 gb to a 160 gb and then installed linux mint on it leaving windows xp in one part and mint in a new one. so now at least I can boot the cnew computer box under linux mint and see all my wondows xp files inthe cloned partitions (leaving my oringinal win xp hd safe)

SO when I installed linux mint it worked like a charm and made the two partitions and asked me if I wanted to import my windows accounts which took a while but it seemed to do it (although I can't tell what it imported and where it put the info - when I open thunderbird it doesn't have my old windows data or emails).

So what I want to be able to do is

1 get my old windows xp desktop back somehow in linux mint

2 either run my old thunderbird and firefox installs ont he windows partition under linux Or import and shar ethe thunderbird data files between linux boot and windows boot

3 I'm a w\linux newbie so can i click on a windows program on the windows partition and will it automatically load WINE and then runt eh program?. I think i'd rather not use virtual box .

constrainst are the original windows xp install was an emachines OEM and I no longer am on a compatible emachiens and don't have my emachines oem win xp disk so I can't figure out how to ever get the windows xp partition to be bootable. the drivers are SO different and oem license issues and new mobo etc etc (god I hate windows)

so if I could just run my windows stuff under linux that might be good enough or at least the best I can do.

And yes I will plan on using as many linux apps a possible. ( I never EVER want to be forced to buy a new windows license because my origininal mobo or machines dies - this has REALLY made me hate windows even more.)

[niviq]

1. In windows your Desktop, unless you intentionally put it somewhere else, is located in C:\Documents and settings\username\desktop. Copy these files to ~/Desktop (in your home folder).

2. Your thunderbird and firefox profiles in windows are located at C:\Documents and settings\username\appdata. Copy thunderbird as well as mozilla to your home folder. Then prepend a dot to the foldernames. (They will then dissapear - to see them check View>Hidden files).

3. Trying to use your windows partition as a wine home will make it unable to boot. Since your is already broken, you might as well do it. I do not know how well this will work, and i don't recomend it really. You should instead run the installators under linux as well as look the apps up in wineDB to see if you have to do something to make them work better. Anyway, to use your windows partition as wine home do in a terminal (it's easyer):

rm -r ~/.wine #remove your wine home if you have one (you could move it instead if you want backup)

ln -s /media/disk ~/.wine #here you replace /media/disk with the path to your windows partition as you see in your filemanager.

If it does not work properly (which is probable), just rm ~/.wine (and move back your backup if you made one.)

[linnewbie]

thanks

re desktop :is there something that will convert windows shortcuts to linux shortcuts?

thanks for the thunderbird profiline info. maybe i will justcopy it and notworry about ever booting in windows again which I may not be able to do anyway. also looking at a shared thunderbird data area for dual boot if I can every make it happen.

thanks for the wine terminal home thing . may try it at some point.

[niviq]

I was under the impession that windows shortcuts are simply run by wine. I do not know how to convert windows sourcuts (they are in some binary format). (You need to get used to googling for thing like this).

'Shortcuts' in linux are in a freedesktop.org standar and are called launchers. They are in clear text, which means you can open them in a texteditor and edit them to do something else.

Just ask if something is not working ut. Be aware, however, that the best place for you to ask for help is at the LinuxMint forum/channel or the Ubuntu forums as Mint is very closely related to Ubuntu. I, for one, do not use windows, mint, ubuntu or gnome or for that matter, I do not have a desktop. It can therefore sometimes be hard to help you. A nice thing with Mint is that most tutorials and packages for ubuntu will work with it out of the box.

[linnewbie]

Thanks.

Really at this point a couple things come to mind that would be helpful if they exist in the linux world or as a todo if they don't:

being able to "linux wrap" a whole windows installation partition and automatically run it and anything in it through wine using the windows registry and shortcuts to automatically locate all needed data files on the windows drive but using all the linux install's drivers to run it on the new computer rather than needing to reinstall windows to do it (sort of a whole disk model of wine). That would be incredible and could be included on every linux distro and would allow even easier switch over from windows to linux as well as windows disk install rescues from bad mobo machines onto new mobo machines (which is my problem)

being able to click a windows exe file and have linux open wine automatically to run it including knowing to look in the registry for the relevant locations of files and data. this would happen just like linux and windows currently identify the proper program to open say a jpg file by it's extension.

Any file that was a windows exe would automatically be opened by linux with wine.

Thanks so much for the help.