Installing an operating system is a two-step process. This involves formatting the SD card to the FAT filesystem format, and copying and pasting the image to the card.

File Allocation Table (FAT) is a method used for recording which sectors of a disk files are stored in and which sectors are free to be written to. It has its origins in the 1970s, when Bill Gates and Marc McDonald developed it for use on floppy disks. Due to its robustness and simplicity, it is still found on SD cards today and is the format we will need in order to install Raspbian.

When you purchase an SD card, you might notice that it is already formatted to FAT, as this format is popular with devices such as digital cameras. Many manufacturers ship the card so that it is ready to go out of the box and no further formatting is required. However, we recommend formatting your card if you did not purchase the official SD card.

To format and copy the downloaded Raspbian image to...