Distros with low (and I mean low) requirements

I've got an old subnotebook in almost perfect condition. It runs Windows 98SE like a champ, and it has only one cosmetic blemish: the trackpoint is missing its rubber nub.

I'd be curious to experiment with it as a Linux machine, but -- here's the catch -- it's not old so much as ancient.

NEC Ready 120LT

* Blazing 200MHz Cyrix Processor
* 2 (count 'em) GB 4200rpm Toshiba HDD
* 32 MB RAM (max 64 IIRC, and I probably don't )
* video card supports VGA natively, 800x600 and 1024x768 external
* Serial, Parallel, VGA, PS2 ports
* proprietary port for external CD-ROM
* PCMCIA slot
* internal modem (of indeterminate origin)

Is there a distro out there for me? Or should I find a different hobby

 

Maybe Slitaz or Damn Small Linux?

 

Thanks for the heads up. DSL looks like it might be a winner.

I'm not sure exactly why I'm doing this. It probably isn't very rational

I thought I had lost that machine a long time ago. I recently came across it while going through a few things I had stored in my parents attic, years and years ago. The thing really is built like a champ. Solid, sturdy, and booted right up. Battery life is about 20 minutes, but what can you expect after a decade!

 

Haha, give the little guy a second chance at life! DSL would be my first choice as well. I wonder if that baby can handle PCMCIA ethernet.

 

Lol this should be interesting to follow....

 

Me too.

Man, do things change in ten years. I wonder if the reason I bought that Fujitsu with super-thin bezel had anything to do with subconscious memories of using this beast in college.


For users still wanting a Windows 98-based computer, the company is offering a 3.6-pound notebook priced at $999 that has a 200-MHz Media GX processor from Cyrix, an 8-inch dual scan display, a CD-ROM drive and 56 kbps modem that could prove popular with students and home users. Link

I'll post actual pics if it works.

 

Time sure flies, don't it? Kudos to CNet for not deleting old articles. Seriously, those old tech posts are a record of our history! Scrapping them is a sacrelage.

 

I've got AntiX on now...see screenshots, just posted one....very low req

 

@archer7
I remember I was living in southern Maine at the time, and needed something portable that I could use for a study abroad program in the UK. I wanted a ThinkPad but was "urged" by my dad to support National Semiconductor (not many tech jobs in Maine at the time - maybe there still aren't). I didn't care. It looked cool and ran Civilization and Office.
[/nostalgia]

 

Ah yes memories... I had a Gateway Handbook 486 (more pics here) as one of my first portables, it ran Slackware.

Of course the thing to worry about now is really not so much what distro (most will do fine if stripped down) but what window managers and applications you plan on using.

Here are some links:

http://linux.slashdot.org/linux/06/02/25/2117223.shtml

http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:sUKLJC9iXDIJ:www.ibm.com/developerworks/linux/library/l-linux-memory.html+http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/linux/library/l-linux-memory.html%3Fca%3Ddgr-lnxw06ReduceMemoryFootprint%26S_TACT%3D105AGY59%26S_CMP%3Dgrlnxw06&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=iceweasel-a

http://polishlinux.org/choose/linux-on-old-hardware/

http://linux.com/news/hardware/desktops/8248-linux-distros-for-older-hardware

 

I used to run DSL on a laptop with the same specs, so +1 for that suggestion.

 

run something that has a 2.4 kernel (or older), will use lots less ram.

 

It seems that DSL would be a better choice for your machine.

However, from the previous experience, i managed to squeeze a customized puppylinux into a Compaq laptop with 800x600 12inch screen, AMD-K6 286mhz CPU, 4GBHDD, 64mb RAM.
Failed with Fluxbuntu, Xbuntu, and Debian LXDE.

 

First roadblock: need to replace cable for external cd-rom. Luckily, folks seem to have given up on this laptop; stuff is cheap.

New external cd-rom cable: $14
New 6-cell battery: $28
Netgear 802.11b 16-bit PCMCIA ( works w/ DSL): $10
--
Linux netbook w/ functional wireless: $52
Nostalgia: priceless

 

That battery might be "new," but it was made years ago, and Li-ion batteries go bad more on how old they are than how much they were used. You would probably be better off buying new cells and replacing the ones in the pack you have. Also the new cells should have better capacity and life than the cells in the battery pack had when they were new.

Still, this sounds so cool. I put an ATI 9800PRO in an overclocked K6-III+. It was kind of cool.

Also, couldn't installing linux with a tiny footprint really speed things up on a more modern computer? I'm a little upset that Ubuntu is taking as long to load as Vista on my new laptop.

 

Hell! Why everyone on DSL side? Have anyone tried slitaz? http://slitaz.org

try slitaz and your pc gona fly with it

 

That laptop wouldn't know what to do with a Li-ion battery -- it's nickel metal hydride all the way

It's a good point, though. Might be worth purchasing a more recently built aftermarket battery if I decide battery surgery isn't for me...

Someone else mentioned it as a possibility to consider. I looked into it a little bit, but the information I found for DSL seemed more reassuring (ability to function on 32M RAM, no-hassle compatibility with wireless cards that fit my machine). That may be true of slitaz also, but their wiki wasn't as helpful

 

you have to forgive them they are french guys ,you might want to try the forum or french wiki

 

I think Slitaz is small in size but I don't think it's as small as DSL in RAM usage.

 

Give it a try