Possibly. Most computers of that era have a BIOS limitation of 8gb for disks, although some later ones the limit was raised to 32gb. If you install the hard drive and either the computer doesn't start, or the hard drive isn't detected, this is why. If you really want to, there's a program called bios patcher, aka "bp", which can patch your BIOS to work around that limitation. The program should be available at www.rom.by. You will also need either the latest bios for your motherboard, or else to dump the factory bios (I recommend the first).

The newest version should work fine. DSL, btw, comes mainly in the form of a livecd, and isn't really intended to be installed to the hard drive (although it can be). If you're looking for the true linux experience though, I'd go with something more along the lines of debian, and install Xfce4 as your GUI. DSL is extremely stripped down, and sometimes can be quite a pain to deal with, since there's no real package management system (ie programs for the most part have to be compiled). Debian, on the other hand, is fairly easy to use, and has IMO the best package management system out there, not to mention the largest collection of packages in their repositories.

If you've got any more questions, just post back here

so how do i install debian with the Xfce4 GUI interface? Do i just find a distribution of Debian that has Xfce4 with it, or do I have to download and install them separately. If it's the latter I'm going to need assistance on how to do that. Also, does Debian run primarily off a cd, or can it install onto the hard drive.

Debian would be installed to the hard drive. During the installation, debian gives you the option of what packages you want to install, Xfce4 should be included in those options. I think if you get the "Xfce4" package and "xserver-xorg" one (along with the base packages), it should pull in everything else you need. If it's not an option, just install Gnome (the default choice), then use "apt-get install xfce4" later.

I'd try something more along the lines of:

Slax
Knoppix (or even Knoppix STD)
Freesbie
DSL (Damn Small Linux)
LBT (Linux Bootable Toolkit)

The idea is that something light (Ubuntu isn't light and will poll for all sorts of late model hardware) may attempt to detect and enable only the most essential hardware.

I mentioned a few very old distributions (Knoppix STD and LBT haven't been updated in awhile) because they may be better at detecting and enabling legacy hardware than somethink akin to Ubuntu.

If you are bandwidth-limited, see if you can borrow one of these or check to see if you've some old mags that came with Live CDs.

I'm a little frustrated w/the two computers right now b/c comp. 1(the one i gave the details to) will not recognize the monitor right now. the connection in the back is loose. And comp. 2 will not log on to windows. it says boot error. The only thing i changed for them is that on comp. 1 I installed some memory but that shouldn't affect the monitor recognition at all. right? plz help

Boot from a windows 98 boot disk (link), and run "fdisk /mbr". If that fails, just reinstall windows, or install linux. for your issues with booting from the ubuntu cd, you may have to change an option in the bios to tell it to boot from the cdrom before the hard drive. have you made any changes to this system at all?

Right, but if the motherboard doesn't support 128mb dimms, it might cause it not to boot. Does it still beep like it usually does? Try opening up the case and propping it up, so you can change out the dimms without moving anything (never change them with the computer turned on though). Then try removing the new dimm (the 128mb one), and see if it fixes things. If it doesn't, try wiggling the monitor connector, and make sure it's actually plugged in the right way (not to insult you or anything, I've done this several times myself, even though it shouldn't be possible). If your monitor cable was plugged in upside down, check to make sure none of the pins are pushed in, or check it with another computer. A small pair of needle-nose pliers works well for pulling the pin(s) back out, if need be, or else tweezers can also work, although they're a pain.

If that works, try putting the new dimm back in, and see if it still works. If that fails, make sure the dimm is actually in all the way. Wiggle it around a little to make sure it's making a good connection, and then try it again. If it still fails, try removing the original (smaller) dimm, the chipset may be limited to 128mb max. If all else fails, see if you can find some smaller dimms or try a different dimm, that one may be bad.

Disclaimer: static electricity can kill your computer, always touch some bare metal on the case before touching any of the components. Never touch anything inside your computer while it's running, because although there's not enough power to hurt you (unless you go screwing around with the power supply), it still can seriously damage your components. When in doubt, refer to MegaTokyo for the best component handling tactics

i was pretty much looking for the same thing in my thread and someone suggested this site: http://polishlinux.org/choose/linux-on-old-hardware/