trial and error not working. Please help
 

i have an old computer:

Sony viao
AMD duron 500MHz, 64Kb cache
128Mb RAM

And I want to convert it into a music/DVD player. I've tried a number of distributions (knoppix, redhat, damn small linux) and none seem to be what I want.

All I want to be able to do is:
1) boot fast
2) attach an external hard drive (usb stick)
3) play music and movies (including DVDs) through a sterio and/or tv
4) if there is the possibility to have internet that's a plus (I use a PCMCIA modem)

I'm averagly PC-competent but would very much appreciate some experienced help in this matter. I'm sure there are others who would like to convert their old laptop into a media centre too but lack the technical proficiecy or knowledge.

thanks in advance

My suggestion is a Live-CD named Slax. Get the frodo-edition that comes without X, since it seems you don't really need it. Read up on it, with modules customizing is a snap. You'll want these modules - mplayer, win32codecs, libdvdcss. In the US, win32codecs and libdvdcss are illegal, but there is no alternative and they have yet to hunt someone down for it :-). There should be a relatively easy install to hard-drive script so that you use to free that drive back up. MPlayer, a music player, can play video on the framebuffer without X, which is nice for your modest specs.