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What linux should I install?

Puppy is indeed an excellent, and favoured, choice for old computers. One thing to keep in mind though, is that is is not secure like other Linux distros. Regular users run as root! I know it sounds bizarre in this day and age, but perhaps it's not any worse than MS-windows OSs which I've heard do the same. :)
 
Caluser2000 said:
How's about OS/2 on a 486DX2/66 with 16megs of ram and total install including usefull apps and networking, of about 120meg. Graphical of course ;)
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Cool but easy. For a challenge, try the Warp install on a amchine with only 4 megs of RAM. :)
 
ppo said:
I have a Pentium, with a 4 GB HD, circa 1995.

What linux should I install?
Click to expand...

What do you want to do?

A Pentium is a quite able machine, your options are numerous.

I would try a Linux with a 2.4 kernel, or a SCO UNIX for a change. You could try OS/2 or BeOS or Minix or Windows 95 or Windows NT 3.51.

You could also run CPM-86 and MS-DOS.

You have a LOT of options with such a machine.
 
glitch said:
Slackware Linux is a good choice for older systems. Depending on your RAM limitations, you may want to install an older version of Slackware. I had no problems running 10.0 on a 486 with 20 MB RAM in console-only mode.
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I had some problems but managed to run Slackware 3.0 with Linux kernel 1.2 on an old laptop Texas Instruments Travel Mate 3000 with a 386SX at 16 MHz, a 40 MB HDD and only 2 MB of RAM.

I could succesfully run a FTP client and a telnet client. Using Lynx to surf the web was possible but painful as it started trashing the swap like mad... I had to copy over the Lynx binary from a RedHat 2.0 system, and then as it was ELF instead of COFF (Slackware 3.0 was all COFF, if I remember right) I had to copy over some extra libs -- I don't remember the details, but it involved ftp'ing to a named-pipe-file and some crazy shit...

Then the floppy drive died, and I finally decided to dump the machine. The challenge was done, and the floppy replacement was too expensive.

I used a pocket ethernet adapter to get network support.
 
I have finally managed to install a new HD and even changed the floppy disk drive.

Now the computer doesn't recognize the floppy disk, I have changed various times the drive and am sure that the cables are all correctly installed.

I'm out of ideas.
 
Could be a faulty onboard fdd controller or possibly the cable. You may be able to use a multi i/o card to get the fdd functioning.
 
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I like Peppermint OS, which is a variation of Lubuntu and both OSes can go extremely low in minimum specs. I installed Peppermint OS, instead of Lubuntu because (to me anyway) a "flaw" in Lubuntu. And that was because Lubuntu uses Chrome (which I personally think is a piece of shit/garbage) of an internet browser. But Peppermint OS (Peppermint One, not Peppermint Ice) uses Firefox as their default internet browser. I read some time ago, while I was a part of a reddit discussion in their "The Stallman Subreddit", that the Opera browser would be even better for extremely low ram systems. So anyway I recommend you Peppermint OS/One if you like Firefox or Lubuntu(and Peppermint Ice), if you like Chrome as your default internet browser.

If linking is okay, I will post links to Lubuntu and Peppermint OS

http://lubuntu.net/

http://peppermintos.com/

Both OSes can be run from a USB stick , along being live discs CD versions. All you need to put them on a USB stick is to use

Universal USB Installer

http://www.pendrivelinux.com/universal-usb-installer-easy-as-1-2-3/

And their main page is

http://www.pendrivelinux.com/
 
WolverineDK said:
I like Peppermint OS, which is a variation of Lubuntu and both OSes can go extremely low in minimum specs. I installed Peppermint OS, instead of Lubuntu because (to me anyway) a "flaw" in Lubuntu. And that was because Lubuntu uses Chrome (which I personally think is a piece of shit/garbage) of an internet browser. But Peppermint OS (Peppermint One, not Peppermint Ice) uses Firefox as their default internet browser. I read some time ago, while I was a part of a reddit discussion in their "The Stallman Subreddit", that the Opera browser would be even better for extremely low ram systems. So anyway I recommend you Peppermint OS/One if you like Firefox or Lubuntu(and Peppermint Ice), if you like Chrome as your default internet browser.

If linking is okay, I will post links to Lubuntu and Peppermint OS

http://lubuntu.net/

http://peppermintos.com/

Both OSes can be run from a USB stick , along being live discs CD versions. All you need to put them on a USB stick is to use

Universal USB Installer

http://www.pendrivelinux.com/universal-usb-installer-easy-as-1-2-3/

And their main page is

http://www.pendrivelinux.com/
Click to expand...


You could just remove Chrome and install Firefox via synaptic.
 
Some of us like Chrome, tyvm.. I always have to uninstall Firefox from things because my opinion is exactly reversed. The only thing Firefox has going for it IMHO is that it's ad blocking capacity is slightly better, but eventually Adblock Plus for Chrome will also block video ads, and that difference will be nullified.

In my opinion Firefox has become bloated with "features" and interface options that I don't want or need. It takes a long time to start up, and longer to render pages than Chrome or IE9 (and I've used FF4, I'm not comparing 3 to Chrome Beta or IE9).

Anyway your distro of Linux shouldn't be based on what browser they include - that's just a matter of what's on the surface. Anything related to Ubuntu is (essentially) Ubuntu, and Ubuntu is only separated by Debian in it's release schedule, repositories, and bundled software. Debian has a long family tree..

When you pick a Linux it's basically a matter of which "root" distribution it's related to:
-Debian (APT System/DEB Packages)
-Slackware (Source compilation)
-Gentoo ("Emerge" system)
-Redhat (RPM packages)
-SuSE (YAST package manager, various package types including RPM)
(There are other "base" distributions, but these are the bigger names)

Most distributions today are based on Debian, most notably Ubuntu, and with Ubuntu's growth a whole line of distributions are based on Ubuntu, rather than Debian, which is an odd turn in the family tree. I'm not aware of any Gentoo-based or SuSE-based distributions except themselves (and maybe live versions thereof, if those count as separate). The only Redhat-based distribution besides Redhat seems to be CentOS. Slackware basically represents "Linux" itself, the kernel and base set of tools. It doesn't add user-friendliness and package management like other distros do.

Basically you choose a "family" based on what underlying distro you are comfortable with, and then you pick which distribution within that family you prefer for it's bundled software (or lack thereof) and service structure, and in some cases (Ubuntu) can go another step and find specialized versions of that distro (and apparently another step, as we've seen here, in the case of Lubuntu->Peppermint).

Also worth keeping BSD variants in mind. They're very similar to Linux with their own advantages and disadvantages - FreeBSD and NetBSD are the big names in that category.
 
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Raven, sorry for cursing at Chrome. I just get a bad feeling when I use Chrome. Cause it does not feel right so to speak for me. Cause I started out with Netscape, and then IE, then I experimented with Maxthon. And then I tried FF 2 point something, and I was hooked, cause it has the "IE" feeling but was so much better. And to me Chrome feels more like add and spyware . Than a real browser. So that is why I personally dislike Chrome. But as I said, if you like Chrome as your internet browser. Then fine. And sorry for going off topic, cause I agree with you , when it comes to the choosing of the Linux family, since "within" the Debian family, then some of the variations/derivations has both been using Ubuntu and then Debian (Linux Mint comes to mind here), hell you can basically call it (if you have some twisted humour), that there has been some serious incestuous relationships/inbreeding along the way ;) when it comes to the overall Debian family of Linux operating systems. But I recommended Lubuntu and Peppermint OS, cause both of them are effective light weight systems. Since he mentioned he had enough memory to make it happen. And to make it even cooler, There are even certain gentoo distributions that uses LXDE as their Window Manager. And the distro I am thinking off, is Sabayon Linux which has the choice of many different window managers from the getgo.

A good site for finding either a BSD or Linux distro that will fit his needs is

Distrowatch.com

http://distrowatch.com/

And if he is after a total customisation of his Linux distro, then there are Linux From Scratch

http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/
 
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