Click to See Complete Forum and Search --> : Which Linux?
Eclipso
09-23-2003, 05:39 AM
Hey guys im a Newbie to linux, major newbie never sued it b4.
I have a old machine at home running Windows 95.
It has a 120mhz Pentium, 1gig HDD, 64mb SDRAM, socket 7 pentium by the way. Note sure if there is other info needed. Also ilcuded a CD-ROM, floppy drive. Can you guys advise which Linux i should use? :confused: i was told to try Redhat, but i feel thats too heavy for my system.:confused:
Hi, I would say use Debain (http://debian.org) (although the installatiobn is a bit complicated for a newbie) but I learned a lot about linux from the installation - Debian is good because you can install what you want so you can have a really niftly little set up.
There is a really big thread which covers the most appropriate distribution in the /dev/random forum
here (http://justlinux.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=110030)
Which you should probabily read (and post in!) ;)
deathadder
09-23-2003, 05:50 AM
have a look at this main thread
http://justlinux.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=110030&highlight=RANt
beat me to it jme
Eclipso
09-23-2003, 01:19 PM
yeh ill give Debian a try, wish me luck lol also will it run ok on mysystem you guys think as in speed and etc, will the OS take too much space?
BMK1st
09-23-2003, 01:28 PM
With that 1 gig hd, you won't be able to use KDE or gnome, because it takes too many space and will be tooo slow for you. So, command line console might be better for you
If you want an window manager, I suggest fluxbox or other lightweight manger like blackbox or openbox.
About debian, I never use it before, so I don't know if it will take alot of space. Maybe some debian user can answer this question.
sclebo05
09-23-2003, 01:41 PM
if you want something you can use right away, use vector linux. it will run like a banshee and will take 20 minutes to set up. and everyhting will work.
If you're planning on installing debian I would suggest reading the documentation on the Debian (http://debian.org) website and there is a fantastic article that will guide you through a debian installation written by Clinton de Young here (http://www.osnews.com/story.php?news_id=2016)
It's a great walk throuhg - although with your specs the parts on installing X and a windows manager might be a bit of a push with your system! You could always install one of the 'lighter' windows managers if you don't want to have to use cli all of the time. See the main thread on windows managers here (http://justlinux.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=107415)
Have Fun!
DSwain
09-23-2003, 08:29 PM
actually, if you're running Mandrake you can get Gnome in there. I've had tight installs down to 450 mb i think with KDE... it's possible. it would be tight definitly, but it could be done. the bad thing about debian is that it's so huge.
Debian can be what ever size you want it to be - the best thing about Debian is that you have control over exactly what you install. The basic Debian installation is really small as it only installs a base system and then you install what you want after that. So, you can install Debian on most machines - despite the specifications - you just have to scale the installation to the specifications from a base install on say a P133 with 1GB HD and 32MB RAM to a full install with all the bells and wistles on a top spec machine.
Jme
DSwain
09-24-2003, 04:48 PM
You're right about that. I misstated what i said before, or what i meant to say. Debian is a huge distro to download ISO's for, 7 disks, i mean that's a huge load of stuff. But yeah, any distro can be made into a minimal install. sorry about what i said before
Fryguy8
09-24-2003, 04:56 PM
I like debian for slow comps. It's not that hard to install, and it doesn't take up a lot of space. I have a debian install doing mail/web server with some web apps (squirrelmail) on a p70 with a 750mb hard drive one room over. granted that is CLI only, but you could easily fit a minimalistic X with window manager no problem.
sclebo05
09-24-2003, 05:01 PM
if you are thinking of CLI, along the vector lines is its base system slackware. i have slack9 running on a p1-200mhz and it serves my web page, so an older slack would undoubtedly run like a banshee.
DSwain
09-24-2003, 06:17 PM
yeah, Slackware is a great distro, small too. To be honest, i found Vector to be a much more difficult install than Slackware. That may just be me, but whatever.
carrja99
09-24-2003, 07:52 PM
Originally posted by Eclipso
Hey guys im a Newbie to linux, major newbie never sued it b4.
Never sued it before? You're going to sue Linux? Who in particular? Red Hat?
What, do you hold patents to some infringng code too? :D