I am running a fairly old computer (specs are below) and so far I have been runnind Debian based distros. How does slack run on older hardware? Would it be worth switching? How easy is slack to use?

Slackware will work very well on your old hardware.

Slack runs well on older hardware. As far as how easy is it to use, it's as easy to use as any other distro. Some of the configuration needs to be done manually, but it's no big deal. Just depends on your level of experience and how much you want to get your hands dirty. But Slack's rep for being difficult is really mostly a bunch of bull.

But then again ... given the fact that you're pretty much in an orbit around
debian (or its derivatives) there should be no problem with getting a minimum
install to run on it, either, specifically with DSL.

If you want a different kind of experience, if no hand-holding at all, manual
resolution of dependencies (mind you, I end up doing that on Debian bases
systems too, and it's harder than on slack ;}) and total control of your system
makes your heart go fonder, Slack is THE choice :}


Cheers,
Tink

I used to push Debian really hard, but finally realized that people who didn't understand it well enough to grasp why it's the best distro, really should play around with others until the Truth dawns.

Couldn't have said it better !

I put Debian on an old 120mhz laptop a couple of weeks ago and it runs quite well.

Text console only, no room for X on its miniscule hard drive. My main gripe with Debian is that some packages get spewed all over the file system, e.g. Apache is divided up all over the place. /usr/lib/cgi-bin? Give me a break, please.

That being said I have Slackware-current on a 486 with X, apache, php, mysql. X is slow to start-up but runs tolerably well once it gets going. I wouldn't even consider trying to run something like the Gimp though. I stick to console mode 99% of the time but I prefer that no matter what the hardware situation.

Apache runs fine, but PHP and mysql stuff isn't what I would call snappy.

I recommend Slackware, ultimately. I got my loyalties to consider.

I run both. Slackware on my laptop and Debian on a IBM Netfinity 5000 server at my house. I really suggest using which one is more suited to your needs. Both have great package managers. However I am more familiar with Slackware and prefer it more. For a window manager slackware comes with Fluxbox which in my opinion is a very fast window manager.

Give them both a try you can always blow it away and put another on their.