Ubuntu on old desktops

[Gargamella]

i have an old desktop originally windows98 (64 MB ram Pentium Celeron 400 MHz)

so it is preistoric but because off i need it to use in wifi i had to bring it in Winxp for drivers incompatibility.

It's slow ... slow............................
slow.............................................
.................................................s low

but usefull to browse the internet and to download/upload

i would like to install a linux ( ubuntu if possible ) in it... but if the hardware is old i have to use an old linux release? or it is quite the same and it will detect its possibility?

[Albi]

Give it around 128mb more of ram and you should be able to install xubuntu on it

However, that's really slow, and the best option would be to do a server install and fluxbox:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Fluxbox
or IceWM
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Ic...ht=%28IceWM%29

See this:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/In...wMemorySystems

[anaconda]

You might want to try some light linux distributions.
puppy linux
and
DamnSmallLinux (DSL)

are among the lightest. I like DSL more, but puppy is much easier for new users.

Even if you install a heavier os, you might want to have a light one for surfing the web etc..

[Gargamella]

thank you for linking

i know it is slow...but you know that i am using XP on it...
so should i install the last version of xubuntu? (this i had not understand)

[Albi]

thank you for linking

i know it is slow...but you know that i am using XP on it...
so should i install the last version of xubuntu? (this i had not understand)

Xubuntu might STILL be too slow for you

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/In...wMemorySystems

Is the best guide to follow

And usually, the newer versions of linux won't mean it doesn't detect your hardware good, but if you want an older one, Damn Small Linux uses the 2.4 kernel and it's much lighter.

[Gargamella]

from www.xubuntu.org

Recommended Minimum Requirements

To run the Desktop CD at least 128 megabytes of RAM is required. To use the installed system at least 64 megabytes of RAM is required but 128 is recommended. At least 1.4 gigabytes of disk space is required.

the very important thing is the wireless pci card, a Vivanco one
which i added this year.

so i have to find if it is compatible...may i would try it with the live cd.

might be a good idea?

[Albi]

yes, that's a good idea, however, the live cd will be VERY slow on that computer. i had one with double that (800mhz/128mb ram) and it took over a minute to start up firefox, but you should definitely do it before installing

[Gargamella]

so let it be ;D but i need to test the wireless if it does not work i will not pass to linux with that pc

[IYY]

It's all about the window manager/DE. IceWM, Fluxbox and even XFCE are good choices.

[PatrickMay16]

Fackin' back through time at 300,000 years per minute.

I suggest that you add a bit more RAM if possible, like someone else said. Then, do an Ubuntu server install and use apt-get to install x-window-system-core, icewm or another light window manager, and whatever applications you'd like to use. Also you could try turning off font anti-aliasing and turning off unneeded services (sysv-rc-conf, which is in the repositories, is great for this).