'Easy' liinux for an old laptop?

Andrew_McP · 27 Jul 2008 at 17:48

My backup, backup net access machine, a Tecra 8000 (PII 200MHz, 196Mb) has blown a hard disk, and I'm contemplating putting Linux on the replacement to save an XP install (why waste a licence on a machine I rarely use?)

In the past I've enjoyed using a Knoppix bootable CD on other machines for simple, emergency testing (eg when a HD dies and you want to check the hardware). But I've very little experience of Linux really.

I'm looking for something which won't strain the laptop, installs with a minimum of fuss, and that I can use to learn a bit more about Linux. There's a wide range of versions and advice out there, but so far none of the leads I've followed had led me to something which seems to fit the bill.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Andrew McP

PS Thanks to whoever put this in the right place. Clearly if I managed to miss the Linux section there is little chance I'll be able to master a Linux install. What a muppet! :-)

OCdude · 27 Jul 2008 at 18:21

http://www.linuxmint.com/

Andrew_McP · 27 Jul 2008 at 19:20

Thanks, I'll have a look. Of course if I'd removed my blinkers for long enough to find this section I might have also seen the similar thread on the subject!

Andrew McP

MouseMat2004 · 27 Jul 2008 at 19:46

http://www.puppylinux.org/ is lightweight too

Andrew_McP · 27 Jul 2008 at 20:07

Actually earlier on I interrupted the chunky 'Mint' DL to look at Puppy. It's loaded as I type, and seems to function pretty well. I must admit though, it's been a while since I used this laptop in anger and I'd forgotten just how (relatively) slow 200MHz is.

At this rate I may end up installing DOS6.2 instead. Now *there* was an operating system! I think it was the last time I felt totally in control of my PC. :-)

Andrew McP

MouseMat2004 · 27 Jul 2008 at 20:19

Another light one is Damn Small Linux http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/

swinnie · 27 Jul 2008 at 21:29

Did someone say xubuntu?

http://www.xubuntu.org/

Andrew_McP · 28 Jul 2008 at 07:01

After a bit more research I'm beginning to see that Linux is a bit like biscuits, there's no such thing as a bad one, but it's hard to pick a favourite!

Thanks guys, you've given me plenty to experiment with.

Andrew McP

fester · 28 Jul 2008 at 22:38

swinnie said:
Did someone say xubuntu?

http://www.xubuntu.org/

Xubuntu needs a lot more grunt than than puppy or Dsl ie pentium 3.Try one of the pupplets DCL 2008 or NOP 4.0 if you want the more user friendy xfce desktop . http://www.puppylinux.org/downloads/puplets

jack.mitchell · 28 Jul 2008 at 23:10

PCLinuxOS TinyMe

http://tinyme.mypclinuxos.com/wiki/doku.php

or

MiniMe

http://linux.softpedia.com/get/Syst...nux-Distribution/PCLinuxOS-MiniME-11665.shtml

lazyvulture · 30 Jul 2008 at 14:33

I'm looking at a dual boot for my EEE 1000H.

I'm been pulled towards Xubuntu.

Any other suggestions?

MrWhippy · 30 Jul 2008 at 19:56

DSL is ideal for such a low spec machine.

I have had it running well on a 166Mhz lappy in the past.

sablabra · 30 Jul 2008 at 20:09

You say you want to learn something in the process as well? I would suggest Arch Linux. The installation process demands a bit more than ubuntu, but it's well worth it and you learn a lot at the same time. With arch you basically install only the most necessary in addition to the kernel, and then you can install whatever you want on top of that. That makes it ideal for an old computer.

Btw, Arch Linux is easy to install once you get the hang of it. I can get a finished installed computer with X and a WM installed in 15 min. The first time could be a bit hard. My advice would be to study the excellent Beginners Guide: http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Beginners_Guide