Thank you very much to all those who replied to my query.
Because I was so keen not to disturb Windows unless sure I could run Linux satisfactorily, here's what I decided to do.
I installed Ubuntu 9.04 on a 4GB USB flash drive, creating a 3GB file on the drive in which to store things. (I got the tricky bits I needed from pendrivelinux.com.) Now, when I boot up into persistent Ubuntu from the flash drive, I seem to have no problems. My wireless works and I've been able to update the system satisfactorily.
I'll use this setup for a while and when I'm happy there's nothing that doesn't work, I'll replace Windows with Ubuntu.
Thanks again, Leslie -- To see papers written by me on, among other things, literary allusions in Australian reasons for judgment, start here: http://ssrn.com/author=1164057 To see photos taken by me of, among other things, Sydney now (as well as comparative photos taken by others of Sydney then), start here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/23623...@n03/sets/72157604225021655/ -- -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
