Index of distros with requirements/features

I have an HP laptop with 64MB and some disk space. Has win me and I don't want to get rid of it until I know that a linux will work (win modem, etc.). Also other 486 up boxes.

So I asked on several forums for an appropriate distro, and I googled for 64MB linux.

What I got was lots of partial information re requirements, and less about features, and possibly more importantly, even less about what is not included (wifi, usb, etc.). Most of the low resource distros have an attitude (boot from cd, creating a ramdisk, boot from dos, use an old kernel, etc.). From an enviornmental perspective, we should look at getting these old computers into service.

There does not seem to be one index of distros, listing the kernel, ram req, hd req, features, not included features, etc. I also couldn't find (kernel.org, etc.) a listing of the kernel versions, size in ram (not download), features, ram requirements, etc.

Any thoughts?
John

Any thoughts?

Yeah, it's got tons of pages

http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...rs-4175449680/

You sent me on an interesting trip for the last hour or so. I'm just not good at throwing away a perfectly good piece of electronics.
what about the index. This might be a good site for some to generate ad revenue and at the same time bring this data to 1 place.

John

My thoughts: A computer over ten years old isn't worth having. It's probably using more power per CPU cycle than a more modern machine and won't run any modern software.
I'm a big fan of classic cars and I love historical pieces but using an out of date computer is a pointless exercise in power wastage.

I've got to agree with 273. Though is is possible to run 'modern software' on low powered systems, its more pain that it is worth.

What is the point in keeping 486s, 586s and other ancient low powered systems going when there is so much newer hardware around that runs better, and uses less power?

Originally Posted by jsowden You sent me on an interesting trip for the last hour or so. I'm just not good at throwing away a perfectly good piece of electronics. what about the index. This might be a good site for some to generate ad revenue and at the same time bring this data to 1 place. John

I spent hours and days screwing a a Kapok netbook with lower specs than yours so if anyone knows from personal experience. Kolibrios, MenuetOS, SLackware, Blueflops, and Debian net Install plus all those links and hours of reading in the above thread are your only options (just my limited knowledge speaking this).

Well, all i know about is http://kmandla.wordpress.com/

It is your gear so you gotta work for it. There are only very few people with interests like yours while the majority of linux users are in the above posters camp. So I guess just deal with it. The 2 links I provided are probably the best you are going to get. If not Happy. Oh well. Maybe you will get lucky later and some one else knows of a place I don't and will post.

Good Luck and Happy Trails, Rok.

Originally Posted by jsowden I have an HP laptop with 64MB and some disk space. Has win me and I don't want to get rid of it until I know that a linux will work (win modem, etc.). Also other 486 up boxes.

Laptop with 64mb of RAM is useless in 2013. An iPhone (for example) has 1gb and fits in your pocket.

Originally Posted by cascade9 I've got to agree with 273. Though is is possible to run 'modern software' on low powered systems, its more pain that it is worth. What is the point in keeping 486s, 586s and other ancient low powered systems going when there is so much newer hardware around that runs better, and uses less power?

So you mean that I should abandon my perfectly working netbook with 630MHz CPU, just because it is not up to par in performance with new systems. Nope, won't happen. I will also not throw my G3 Macs into the garbage.

Laptop with 64mb of RAM is useless in 2013. An iPhone (for example) has 1gb and fits in your pocket.

What is useless or usable is up to the user and the specific use-case, not some arbitrary specs.

Also, keep in mind that in many countries new hardware is not that cheap as you maybe used to. Not all of us live in a country with access to cheap new hardware.

Originally Posted by TobiSGD What is useless or usable is up to the user and the specific use-case, not some arbitrary specs.

What is the use case for a 10+ year old laptop with 64mb RAM please?

If you want a GUI, then the smallest Linux is antiX. That will run programs in 64MB, but there are limits. You will not have access to many websites: the Dillo browser has very limited capabilities. The word-processor, Ted, is not fully WYSIWYG.

If you don't want a GUI, then it's fine provided you want to do the things that don't need a GUI.

You could always put FreeDOS on it and play all those vintage games!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FreeDOS
http://www.freedos.org/

Originally Posted by snowpine What is the use case for a 10+ year old laptop with 64mb RAM please?

You'll have to define recycle and experience for me, some aren't as good at polishing I guess? http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...er-4175485658/

I say have fun and use of it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of..._distributions
http://distrowatch.com/search.php?os...&status=Active
also add more info on the hardware like model number.

If you want to learn the command line it's perfect check out (examples from the sea of ∞) Links and Randomplay, for GUI it will slow you down a bit... but Happy Hacking

Originally Posted by snowpine What is the use case for a 10+ year old laptop with 64mb RAM please?

With the right programs it mill make a nice jukebox. Besides that, have a look at the link provided by rokytnji to see what you can do with such low-spec machines.

Originally Posted by TobiSGD With the right programs it mill make a nice jukebox. Besides that, have a look at the link provided by rokytnji to see what you can do with such low-spec machines.

Using it as a jukebox would suggest leaving it on for long periods of time -- something I'd not really want to do with a 10 year old machine especially if I'd not cleaned all the dust out of it.
There's also a difference between using older hardware (I'm typing this on a five year old EEE PC) and using ancient hardware. Using older hardware you can generally use something like XFCE and, while not getting great performance, can do pretty much anything but game. Using ancient hardware is an exercise in compromise and, as I mentioned, a waste of electricity. If you can pick up an old monitor and a Pi, for example, you'll be using far less energy and have a far faster machine. Or you could find somebody giving away or selling a 5 year old machine and get several magnitudes more computing power than the 10 year old machine.
Yes, there might be situations where you're forced to use whatever you have but if you have any choice at all I'd say running an ancient machine is really not worth it unless it's simply for bragging rights.

Originally Posted by 273 Using it as a jukebox would suggest leaving it on for long periods of time -- something I'd not really want to do with a 10 year old machine especially if I'd not cleaned all the dust out of it. There's also a difference between using older hardware (I'm typing this on a five year old EEE PC) and using ancient hardware. Using older hardware you can generally use something like XFCE and, while not getting great performance, can do pretty much anything but game. Using ancient hardware is an exercise in compromise and, as I mentioned, a waste of electricity. If you can pick up an old monitor and a Pi, for example, you'll be using far less energy and have a far faster machine. Or you could find somebody giving away or selling a 5 year old machine and get several magnitudes more computing power than the 10 year old machine. Yes, there might be situations where you're forced to use whatever you have but if you have any choice at all I'd say running an ancient machine is really not worth it unless it's simply for bragging rights.

You would be surprised how many members of LQ use "ancient" machines, a 10 years old machine can easily be a Pentium 4 or even an Athlon64, both much faster than a Pi and for most tasks sufficient CPUs. As I mentioned, it depends on the use-case and where you live. Again, in many countries you wouldn't be able to buy a 5 years old machine for a good price. That you waste more electricity with an older machine is not relevant at all for those people that can't afford to dump their working old machine for a new one.

Have you ever read The Glass Castle? Don't 5 year old machines use more power than 10 (depending; in both cases especially old monitors,) I know around here halve of the thriftstores charge over $100 for junk computers ($15 for same at some other spots) if they work (I like to think thanks to Linux!?.)