Groups | Search | Server Info | Keyboard shortcuts | Login | Register [http] [https] [nntp] [nntps]

Groups > linux.debian.user > #224323 > unrolled thread

Re: Very old hardware...

Back to article view | Back to linux.debian.user

This discussion starts older than the indexed window; earlier articles aren't shown. The article labeled Started by below is the oldest one visible, not the original post.

Contents

  Re: Very old hardware... Gene Heskett <gheskett@shentel.net> - 2020-07-03 20:10 +0200
    Re: Very old hardware... ghe2001 <ghe2001@protonmail.com> - 2020-07-03 20:40 +0200
    Re:  Very old hardware... "Thomas Schmitt" <scdbackup@gmx.net> - 2020-07-03 21:40 +0200
    Re: Very old hardware... David Christensen <dpchrist@holgerdanske.com> - 2020-07-04 04:20 +0200
      Re: Very old hardware... songbird <songbird@anthive.com> - 2020-07-04 13:20 +0200
        Re: Very old hardware... "James H. H. Lampert" <jamesl@touchtonecorp.com> - 2020-07-05 18:10 +0200
      Re: Very old hardware... Keith bainbridge <keithrbau@gmail.com> - 2020-07-05 09:00 +0200

#224323 — Re: Very old hardware...

On Friday 03 July 2020 13:17:33 Davide Lombardo wrote:

> Good evening Debian User, I have found an old PC with these specs:
> CPU: Pentium III 700 Mhz;
> DRAM: 64 MB SDDR
> GPU: RIVA TNT-2
> HARDISK: 10 GB
> FLOPPY DISK DRIVE
> MODEM 56K
> In the receipt is written 3,000 Lire (1,500) Euro of today...
> Do you think I can install something different than the already
> installed WIN98 system ?

There are bugs, particularly in the (IIRC)halt instruction that are not 
fixable by microcode that Pentium is too old and cannot be patched.

And that is not enough memory to run anything newer than the W98 it has. 
Donate it to the curbside pickup.

Cheers, Gene Heskett
-- 
"There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty:
 soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order."
-Ed Howdershelt (Author)
If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable.
 - Louis D. Brandeis
Genes Web page <http://geneslinuxbox.net:6309/gene>

[toc] | [next] | [standalone]

#224325

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA256



‐‐‐‐‐‐‐ Original Message ‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
On Friday, July 3, 2020 12:08 PM, Gene Heskett <gheskett@shentel.net> wrote:

> On Friday 03 July 2020 13:17:33 Davide Lombardo wrote:
>
> > Good evening Debian User, I have found an old PC with these specs:
> > CPU: Pentium III 700 Mhz;
> > DRAM: 64 MB SDDR
> > GPU: RIVA TNT-2
> > HARDISK: 10 GB
> > FLOPPY DISK DRIVE
> > MODEM 56K
> > In the receipt is written 3,000 Lire (1,500) Euro of today...
> > Do you think I can install something different than the already
> > installed WIN98 system ?
>
> There are bugs, particularly in the (IIRC)halt instruction that are not
> fixable by microcode that Pentium is too old and cannot be patched.

I don't understand everything you guys are talking about. But if you're looking for a Debian, my old Pentium III laptop was fat 'n happy with Jessie.

I don't think it had anything as massive as a 10G disk, though :-)

--
Glenn English



-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: ProtonMail

wsBcBAEBCAAGBQJe/3lwAAoJEJ/XhjGCrIwymRwH/2K/TCg8eBlITZiW5rYp
mTkVXkX7vrGEgv57FqY/uxPX9lgTkiICXg8i/P+ET9Wr+CqfvAZBviz0NkYf
QjZ1LizM+UquYgF6QcERy1R+Cli1FdPwSMdDoQpu9FkfffQh9QwHTo1BI+g1
tE3yR0kcOQUm18K8zLNKbyFMjbEAcLPV6tkcjtDiLRvRAQhJkR576si3gbHx
ekuaQbPqvwaD51oisFJiofabgtSaQ5AUsEzL2lKplKADnjvB3PwE92O8ba4b
OJxnpJJL2fueCGZ9aVfPWkGcWyHVWHEp+FHGiPgYr3vnqs6+d9liMkjhY2NN
AjmmCRSqKRO3SYpD1hnYT6g=
=w0hI
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#224332

Hi,

economically and ecologically it makes few sense to let old computers do
real work, even if they are for free. The ratio of power consumption to
computing power is like with an old 100 W light bulb.

But as exhibition object 'tis ok. :))

Davide Lombardo wrote:
> > CPU: Pentium III 700 Mhz;
> > DRAM: 64 MB SDDR
> > Lire

Ok. That would be year 2001 ?

Debian 2.2 "Potato" was contemporary. 3 CD images for "i386" are at
  https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/older-contrib/2.2/
I guess that CD 1 would suffice to get a usable system.

Or 3.0 "Woody" from 2002, as the machine was high-end at that time.
The archive has an all-in-one DVD image
  https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/3.0_r6/i386/iso-dvd/debian-30r6-dvd-i386-binary-1.iso
If you can get an old Parallel-ATA DVD drive, then it should work even
with an IDE controller from 2001, if that controller is good for tapes
(known as EIDE/ATAPI).
Else there are 7 CD images
  https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/3.0_r6/i386/iso-cd/
As window manager i advertise fvwm2, freshly introduced in Woody.
(On Potato it was probably the predecessor fvwm. Good enough.)


Georgi Naplatanov wrote:
> I think that for desktop environment you'll need 1GB RAM at least.

I wonder what Tiny Core Linux offers with "48 MB of RAM ... or less".
  http://www.tinycorelinux.net/intro.html
Damn Small Linux states to run on 16 MB.
  http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/


Gene Heskett wrote:
> Donate it to the curbside pickup.

When the Big Entropy Re-Collector reboots you in the year 1,000,000 AD
you will be accused of cruelty to hardware. Have a good excuse ready.


Have a nice day :)

Thomas

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#224341

On 2020-07-03 11:08, Gene Heskett wrote:
> On Friday 03 July 2020 13:17:33 Davide Lombardo wrote:
> 
>> Good evening Debian User, I have found an old PC with these specs:

> Donate it to the curbside pickup.

+1


On 2020-07-03 11:58, Michael Stone wrote:
 > For practical purposes, you'd be better off with a $35 raspberry PI.

+1



On 2020-07-03 12:30, Thomas Schmitt wrote:
 > The ratio of power consumption to
 > computing power is like with an old 100 W light bulb.

+1


David

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#224346

David Christensen wrote:
> On 2020-07-03 11:08, Gene Heskett wrote:
>> On Friday 03 July 2020 13:17:33 Davide Lombardo wrote:
>> 
>>> Good evening Debian User, I have found an old PC with these specs:
>
>> Donate it to the curbside pickup.
>
> +1
>
>
> On 2020-07-03 11:58, Michael Stone wrote:
> > For practical purposes, you'd be better off with a $35 raspberry PI.
>
> +1
>
>
>
> On 2020-07-03 12:30, Thomas Schmitt wrote:
> > The ratio of power consumption to
> > computing power is like with an old 100 W light bulb.
>
> +1


  agreed with all those too.

  much easier to work with more memory and more recent
processor/graphics.

  give it to the recycler and move on.

  i finally gave up a closet full of old hardware and a
huge monitor that was taking up so much space on my desk
that weighed about 70lbs.  replaced it with a monitor i
can pick up with two fingers and it consumes a lot less
electricity.  for the amount of electricity you burn 
using older tech you might pay for the newer technology
in a few years just in electricity charges alone.

  i did reuse an old Dell PC case for this new hardware
but that's about all i could use.


  songbird

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#224401

My DOS/Linux dual-boot at home was constructed from spare parts, 
including a cast-off Dell motherboard from work that is old enough to 
support two physical floppy drives (it has a 360k and a 1.44M).

It runs IBM PC-DOS 2000 (lightning fast), with DOSSHELL, WordPerfect 
5.1, Quattro, and Xerox Ventura Publisher (DOS/GEM Edition).

And it runs Ubuntu Hardy Heron, with a fairly old version of Gnome. 
Perhaps if I were configuring the Linux side of it today, I might have 
used Debian, and consulted this List for guidance.

It does NOT run WinDoze, and neither does my PC-DOS 2000 notebook (a 
486). I don't allow WinDoze in the house.

And as to computer museums, I highly recommend the CHM, in Mountain 
View, CA. The only real fault I've ever found with it is that they did 
not see fit to include an IBM Merlin (neither a drive, nor even a pack) 
in their early removable-pack hard drive exhibit.

--
James H. H. Lampert

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#224376

On 4/7/20 12:10 pm, David Christensen wrote:
> 
> 
> On 2020-07-03 11:58, Michael Stone wrote:
>  > For practical purposes, you'd be better off with a $35 raspberry PI.
> 
> +1

+1 more

iI have a Pi 3b with 1G ram and it does pretty well - even thought I'm 
used to an i7 with 8G ram  and SSD
> 
> 
> 
> On 2020-07-03 12:30, Thomas Schmitt wrote:
>  > The ratio of power consumption to
>  > computing power is like with an old 100 W light bulb.
> 
> +1

I hadn't thought of that bit, but guess it's true.

Then there is the matter of replacing broken bits


-- 

Keith Bainbridge

keithrbau@gmail.com

0447 667468

[toc] | [prev] | [standalone]

Back to top | Article view | linux.debian.user

csiph-web