[redoak]

I will be partitioning a clean 40GB hard drive and need to know the recommended size for the Linux OS. The primary OS will be "XP Pro," for which I intend to provide 10-15GB. I will also have partitions for 'programs' and 'data.'

[tsunam]

you can run linux in a 2 gig partition, I'd reccommend 5 gigthough

[redoak]

Thanks for the response. I'll go with 5GB.
[redoak}

[saikee]

The majority of my distros are in 5Gb partitions. Size generally about 2.5 to 3.5Gb large. The largest I have is FC2 which is about 6Gb but that is because I have kept the obsolete files. During installation an extra room is needed but 5Gb is about right for the current generation of Linux.

A swap common to all distros is also needed. Its size is about 2 to 3 times the physical memory.

I tend to confine my Linux inside its partition, have the bootloader installed inside its root partition and select one to go into the MBR to manage booting. If a bootloader is available at the root partition of every Linux then a later installed disto will be able pick all of them up for booting. That is how Linux work, pretty much as it picks up Windows. There is no need to move a finger to multi-boot.