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hilary
03-13-2001, 03:45 PM
Hiya,

I would like to learn linux and eventually apache, php and mysql. I have some experience with UNIX and am naively comfortable with command line stuff.

My husband won't share his computer, so I was planning on buying a new one anyway (although I do have a pathetic old mac performa if anyone thinks that is usable. I can't find a network card for it though, so I can't connect to the internet as we use dsl and I don't really want to get a dialup account)

I don't want to spend a lot of money but I don't want to cause problems for myself by being cheap either. If I could do this all for under $500 I'd be very happy.

Can anyone recommend a machine for me? Is there anything I should stay away from? Someone recommended I get an emachine...

Thanks,

Hilary
XxMaCaBrExX
03-13-2001, 04:03 PM
You could buy the parts yourself, then put it all together. If you aren't comfortable with that, I or somebody else around here can build a fairly decent box for around $500. If you are interested, please feel free to let me know by e-mail at macabre@redtailboa.org and I'm sure I can build you a nice one perfect for Linux. :D
mandreko
03-13-2001, 04:29 PM
my friend has an emachines, and we can't get linux to install on it much other than a basic install. no networking seems to work with the hardware (winmodem and network card had no drivers) and the video card wouldn't get any good resolutions.

I'd suggest making your own, or looking for one that specifically says "Linux compatible"
Gnu/Vince
03-13-2001, 06:25 PM
you can get a p90 with 16 MB of RAM and a CD-ROM for under 500$. Then just get a supported (read about them) NIC.
Dru Lee Parsec
03-13-2001, 06:29 PM
I've got Linux running on a P133 with 32 meg of RAM and a 1 gig hard drive. Sure, it's just my firewall computer so it doesn't do much, but it shows that you can certainly use it on a less than cutting edge computer.

$500 is do-able, but if you could go up to about $800 (without a monitor) then you could have a machine that's a nice Linux box and also is fast enough to really get some work on.

Good luck and have fun with it. :)