As I previously wrote, I managed to save an old computer from an eternity of uselessness in a closet at school.  All it took was a free Operating System (Xubuntu) and a $30 investment for a gigabyte of RAM.

While digging through my parents attic, I came across an even older computer and wondered if I’d be able to make it useful.  It’s a Pentium III, 450 mhz machine with 96 mb of RAM and an extra graphics card.  I think I purchased it right when the P III processor came out – way back in 1999 (when I was just about to enter high school).

At the time, it was a hot new gaming PC.  Now, it’s more or less a piece of junk.  Is there something that can work on it?

Enter DSL – Damn Small Linux

Xubuntu is a great Linux distro.  While it’s not as resource hungry as operating systems like Vista, it’s still too much for a PC this old.  The minimum requirements suggest 128mb of RAM to install, but I loaded it up on the Dell at school and 128mb of RAM wasn’t really enough to run it.  I’d suggest 256mb of RAM or more.

That takes Xubuntu out of contention for reviving this older machine.  Luckily, there are more options.

I wanted to stick with a Linux distro – because it’s free, open source, and I don’t have to worry about licensing.  In theory, the machine might run ok if I found the old Windows I had installed on it (Windows 98 I think?), but why would I want to use an out-dated, 10 year old operating system?

I also needed a Linux distro with a GUI.  You can easily find a version of Linux that will work on this old computer – and uses a command line prompt to drive you around the system.  In fact, I downloaded and tested one that fit on a single floppy disk!  But it would be useless for me, because I don’t have the time to teach the kids how to navigate a computer that requires you to type things instead of click them.

I found the best of both worlds – Damn Small Linux.

What Is Damn Small Linux?

It’s an ultra small, lightweight Linux distro.  The entire operating system fits on a CD – and only takes up 50mb of space.  Compare that to the 15 gigabytes that Windows Vista uses… *coughchokesputter*

According to the DSL website, the operating system is lightweight enough to load on a 486 PC with 16mb of RAM.  For those of you keeping track at home, that would put that computer at circa 1990.  I had one of those when I was in grade school.

This seemed perfect, so I wrote a copy of the OS to a CD and booted up the old PC.  It boots up quickly, and I can navigate around the apps with ease.  It doesn’t seem at all as sluggish as I would expect a ten year old computer to be.

I wasn’t able to test out the internet on this computer, because I need to scrounge up a network card.  However, I ran DSL on the Dell at school, and the networking capabilities seemed to work fine.  Complete plug-and-play.  Plug in the network cable, and it immediately connects.

Potential Problems, Dislikes

Xubuntu is practically a Windows replacement.  Despite some oddities and minor differences, students can interact with it very much the same way they would a Windows PC.

Since DSL is so light-weight, it does take some short-cuts and parts of it might seem unappealing to the students (and to you).  For starters, there are two internet browsers installed by default – Dillo and Firefox.  Firefox works fine, but only if you have enough RAM (probably 196mb or 256mb would be good).

Dillo works much better on older computers, but it also strips out most of the visual elements that would appeal to students.  It ignores the CSS styling of a site and presents that content (text, pictures, etc) in a simple top down format.  It takes you back to the 1990′s internet.

Also, the default word processor is quite dated.  It’s basically a text editor.  It saves file in *.rtf (Rich Text Format), which has the appearance of an old manuscript worked up on a typewriter.  You can convert normal *.doc files to be opened with the Word Processor, though.  It is possible to customize the CD so that it will load a better word processor (AbiWord) and with enough RAM you might be able to run Open Office (a fully functional MS Office replacement).

DSL isn’t going to turn your old computer into a high-tech wonder.  But it will make the computer effective.  If you’re looking for bells and whistles, hope that your school will buy you some new computers (or go spend $200 and buy one yourself).  But if you want that old junker to surf the ‘net and allow students to type up their assignments, it’s probably your best bet.