Linux for Older Computers

[The Doctor]

We were talking on the IRC channel earlier and need a Linux distro that can run on an older laptop with a 1 GHz Celeron and 128 MB of RAM.

Puppy Linux and Damn Small Linux are recommended by multiple Web writers.

Sugar Linux, created for the One Laptop Per Child project, will run on lighter hardware but may not be functional enough.

AntiX might be a good option.

Macpup is not a bad looking.

Bodhi Linux is also excellent for slower computers or those who just want more speed.

#!CrunchBang has also been suggested.

Whichever distro is selected, it will need to be loaded by a bootable USB device.  The laptop has a busted CD-ROM drive.

Suggestions?

[750mhz.slinky]

I used to use a distro called Absolute Slackware on a machine with 128mb ram. Worked great, had good support for restricted codecs and what not.....lots of tutorials for learning and what not.

[The Doctor]

I had not seen Absolute Linux before.

I will look into it.  Good tip!

[likemindead]

I'd go with CrunchBang or antiX, personally.



[mccracken]

[The Doctor]

We were just talking about this the other night at the meeting.

I forgot that one of the best "lite" versions of Linux is one that we mirror.  Slitaz is very good for older equipment.

You can more info here.

[rmorgan]

Sheesh, a 1Ghz processor and 128MB of memory is old?  I'm feeling my age...

Anyway, Slackware works well on all machines since it does not come with a lot of services enabled by default and you can install a pretty bare distro out of the box.  Debian would work well, too.

[The Doctor]

Basic Linux  -- never heard of this one before.

The current release of BasicLinux is particularly suitable for old laptops...

Minimum requirements
Intel 386 or compatible
3 mb RAM
DOS (or Windows 95/98 in DOS mode)

[likemindead]

How do YouTube videos look on that hardware?

;-)

Seriously, though, what can you do with something that old?

[mccracken]

[sisco]

How do YouTube videos look on that hardware?

;-)

Seriously, though, what can you do with something that old?

[mccracken]

play nethack :-P

[The Doctor]

Windows 8 belongs on older PCs like a fish needs a bicycle

Get real! It's bad enough that you're going to have to deal with Windows 8 on new PCs, why ask for misery on your old PC?

Each new version of Windows requires greater and faster hardware support.  Win 8 will never be suitable for older computers.

Advantage:  Linux.

[The Doctor]

Resurrect an old PC with Linux

Get the know how to take your old PC and give it a new life. There a multitude of Linux distros out there, but today Leo & Iyaz took a look at Ubuntu and Puppy Linux.

Free podcast featuring Leo Laporte and Iyaz Akhtar. 

[The Doctor]

Zorin OS 6.1 Lite Released

If you are using a system with some older specs and are a new user or someone who wants Windows like interface, Zorin OS 6.1 Lite is what you need. The desktop is based on Lubuntu 12.04, and specially designed for those old machines which fail to load advanced user interfaces and desktop environments.

[The Doctor]

Snowlinux 3 E17 Has Been Officially Released

Based on Debian 7 (Wheezy), the final release of the Enlightenment edition of Snowlinux 3 is here, bringing Linux kernel 3.5 for improved hardware detection (wireless, graphics cards, etc.) and up-to-date applications, including Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird 14.

Recommended hardware requirements for Snowlinux 3 E17:

· An x86 processor;
· At least 128 MB memory;
· At least 2 GB free disk space;
· A graphics card capable of 800x600 resolution;
· A CD-ROM drive or USB port.

Not great for really old machines, but good for those with at least a 1 GHz CPU.

[The Doctor]

Tiny Core Linux: A Barebone Linux Distro That Boots Very Fast

Lightweight Linux distro usually comes in the file size ranging from 20MB to 50MB and they are best suited to use on a old computer. Recently, I come across this tiny Linux distro that weighs only 12MB and it boots up really fast. I am referring to Tiny Core Linux.

[The Doctor]

What version of Linux should I put on my old computer?

Scott has an 8 year old Pentium 4 computer with almost 1GB of RAM, and wants to know what version of Linux would work best on it.

Watch Leo Laporte's answer.