2.) Add the repository to your Software Sources go to System > Administration > Software Sources > Other Software and then click the ADD button. Enter the line below into the Apt-line then click Add Source.
Ubuntu 9.04 Users (this is not a command):
deb http://download.virtualbox.org/virtualbox/debian jaunty non-free
Ubuntu 9.10 Users (this is not a command):
deb http://download.virtualbox.org/virtualbox/debian karmic non-free
It will probably tell you the packages are out of date and to reload them, go ahead and do that. If it doesn't ask you to reload then you will need to refresh package index so you get the correct version when you install, to do so, run this command:
sudo apt-get update
You can now install the latest version of VirtualBox:
sudo apt-get install virtualbox-3.0
(Double check what the latest version is and modify the command above if necessary. You only need to put 3.0 not 3.0.8, it's not that picky.)
Here is the official documentation on how to create and run virtual machines in Virtualbox:
If you are trying to decide between a Palm Pre and an Android powered phone, and you happen to be an Ubuntu user, you can install both in Virtualbox and give them a go. Of course calling and a few other features won't work, but you can get a feel for the OS and see if it has all you need.
I have done both of these in Ubuntu 9.04 and 9.10, however 9.10 requires an extra step or two.
Palm has an excellent guide that has instructions for 32bit and 64bit users, located HERE.
I will give you a few tips though to make the Palm webOS install and use easier.
1.) Where it says "Add the repository to /etc/apt/sources.list:" instead just go to:
System > Administration > Software Sources > Third Party Software and click the add button to add the line it gives you. Much easier. It will want to refresh, which is good, but it will give you an error about not having a key, but that is the next step in their guide so just dismiss the error message.
2.) If you already have the latest version of Virtualbox installed ignore the install command.
3.) The novacom and sdk deb files they tell you to download are current, but the commands they give you beneath them are not, so, change the command to reflect the current file names, just look at the names of the packages you downloaded.
4.) Once webOS is installed and running (either from Virtualbox or through the terminal with the command: palm-emulator) to close apps you click the screen and flick the mouse upwards. Use the End or Esc key to minimize or maximize app windows.
5.) If you don't plan on creating applications for the Palm webOS then don't bother installing the Eclipse plugins it mentions at the end of the guide.
UBUNTU 9.10 USERS:
When you reach the part of the instructions on Palm's site that tell you to run palm-emulator in a terminal, you will get a message that says..
"In order to install or debug applications in the Palm Emulator, the novacom service must be running on your desktop. Please verify that you have the latest Palm SDK installed correctly."
Don't worry, it's just because of a change made to 9.10, (if you see it close the error message) and all you have to do is run this command...
sudo /opt/Palm/novacom/novacomd
...before you run palm-emulator in a separate terminal. That first command starts the novacom service so that you don't get an error when you run palm-emulator.
Ok, so you don't want to have to run those in the terminal every time in the future right?
So just go to System > Preferences > Startup Applications
Click the Add button.
For name enter: Palm WebOS Novacom
For the command enter this: /opt/Palm/novacom/novacomd
Comment field is optional
Click the save button, done.
Now reboot the computer and from here on out you just start up Virtualbox to run Palm WebOS!
----------------------------
Now....
As for the Android instructions, those I will give you here because the ones I found were outdated and I had to adjust them to make them work.
This takes the two images and merges them into one.
1.) Now create a new virtual machine in Virtualbox by opening the program and clicking New.
2.) Name it Android, select Linux as the operating system, and Linux 2.6 as the version.
3.) Enter 300MB for the RAM this is more than enough.
4.) You do not need to create a virtual drive or disk because this is only a live image, you aren't actually installing it, so uncheck Boot Hard Disk (Primary Master) it will pop up a Window telling you things but just click Continue, then click Finish.
8.) Make sure Android is highlighted in the menu by clicking on it, then click Settings.
9.) Select CD/DVD ROM in the menu, check the box for Mount CD/DVD ROM Drive.
10.) Click on ISO image file and find your Android ISO and select it, then click OK.
11.) Select Android in the list of virtual machines and click Start to launch it.
From now on every time you launch it, you will be using the Live image, it will give you a choice of 800x600 or 1024x768 at boot.
The Esc key is useful on Android too.
If you want to actually try installing Android on a hard drive, which isn't always successful, you can try using the Android x86 projects iso and guide here: http://www.android-x86.org/documents/installhowto
So....
Remember, if you try either of these guides, package names will change if they release new versions, thus command will change, usually you can just change the name of the package in the command and you will be good. But always check before running anything.
So, being a curious carbon based lifeform, I decided to try out openSolaris 2008.05 now sporting the GNOME interface, I realized it might not be as smooth as say an Ubuntu install, but figured it couldn't be much worse than some of the lower grade distros I've tried. I mean, it's made by Sun, it must work pretty well. Sigh, I assume too much. I tried installing openSolaris on just about every type of computer running every type of hardware and never got farther than the boot menu on the disc. No error messages, nothing, it just hung on a black screen with Sun's copyright info. That's when I decided to try out VirtualBox, also by Sun, but my reasoning was that they should at least be compatible, which thank god, this time I assumed correctly. The image you see here is openSolaris 2008.05 running in Sun xVM VirtualBox 1.6 on Ubuntu 8.04. Getting openSolaris to run in VirtualBox as a live CD and also to install was really easy, couldn't get usb ports or sound to work, but after everything I just masochistically put myself through trying to install openSolaris on so many machines, usb and sound were the least of my concerns. I guess I shouldn't be surprised really, the only way I ever got Solaris 10 to run was in VMware, ashame I didn't remember that sooner. sigh.
I was surprised after the install that openSolaris ran so quickly in a virtual environment, GIMP loaded up in a couple seconds, and Rhythmbox did too. Usually, even with a lot of resources given, virtual operating systems hang a lot, openSolaris seemed perfectly happy though. Then, out of nowhere, it crashed. Repeatedly. Then I started to get errors that it could not boot from the virtual drive. And then I had to reinstall it.
Sun added some nice touches to customizing GNOME for openSolaris, and being a Linux user, I felt right at home of course in GNOME, but it was weird using an older version of GNOME again even if it has been tweaked. Firefox loaded very quickly and looked slick. You can definitely tell why they hired Ian from Debian, he's made openSolaris seem very accessible to Linux converts. But until they manage to get openSolaris's hardware, driver, and installer issues sorted out, I can't say I would recommend even trying to install it in anything but a virtual environment, for the time being.
My overall opinion: openSolaris shows great promise, keep your eye on it, but for right now, save yourself the migraine of trying to get it installed and configured properly. If anyone says Linux is too hard to use, hand them an openSolaris install disc.
If you should decide you need to feel defeated and lose several hours of your life in the process, here is the link to openSolaris so you can download it.
There is an excellent page over at Forever For Now where you can learn how to create your own VMware images and how to tweak them for better performance. The article also has blank VMware images in 10 GB and 20 GB sizes that you can download to get you started.
Just a side note to the article: If you have trouble configuring a guest operating system in VMware, sometimes you have to press F2 as VMware is starting up to enter the BIOS for VMware, in there you can change settings that might help make your life easier.
In a nutshell (and in very non-technical terms), VMware Player lets you run a second (virtual) operating system in a separate window and take it for a test drive. You don't have to log out, don't have to reboot, don't have to do anything except open VMware Player and select which pre-built operating system you want to run. You can also browse the internet securely with the browser appliance. There are a huge range of softwares you can use and all available in the VMware Virtual Appliance Marketplace. Just download one and open it in VMware Player!
So, for someone who wants to try Linux, BSD, or even a piece of software for a particular system including Windows, this is a safe, free and easy way to do it. Keep in mind that any guest operating system you try out in VMware Player will be slightly slower than how it would normally run, and that sometimes not all of the features of your hardware will be accessible. This will depend entirely on your system configuration though. No matter though, as you still get to test out other softwares and see if you like them.
Note: For web designers VMware Player is a dream. You can easily test your websites across multiple platforms and browsers without having to have multiple computers. Make your sites accessible to everyone!
Minimum system requirements to install and use VMware Player:
For a typical host system, a 400MHz or faster processor will work (500MHz recommended) and 512MB RAM minimum (1GB RAM recommended). You must have enough memory to run the host operating system, plus the memory required for each guest operating system and for applications on the host and guest. See your guest operating system and application documentation for their memory requirements. VMware Player requires approximately 150MB of disk space to install the application.
Sure, you could install Virtualbox from your package manager, but then you'd be missing the latest and greatest in updates to Virtualbox. 
