Difference between LiveCD, LiveUSB, full-install, and persistence?

Posted by Jay on Ask Ubuntu See other posts from Ask Ubuntu or by Jay
Published on 2012-06-26T01:21:42Z Indexed on 2012/06/26 3:24 UTC
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installation

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dual-boot

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live-usb

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live-cd

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persistence

I am currently running Ubuntu as a guest vm on a Win 7 host via VirtualBox, but I would like to have a portable version of Ubuntu when I am not using my laptop.

I am unsure as to the difference between the following:

1)LiveCD with persistence; 2)LiveCD without persistence; 3)LiveUSB with persistence; 4)LiveUSB without persistence; 5)Full-install.

I have a USB flash drive (32GB), and I also have empty DVDs lying around. I know that persistence means that data can be saved, but I am unsure as to which option to choose. What is the difference between a LiveUSB and a full-install on a USB thumbdrive and why would I want to pick one over the other? Thanks for any help.

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