Installing Linux On An Old Computer..


yaustar

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Here's the scenrio, a P100 24mb, no ethernet port so that limits my possibilties.. it doesnt help that I am completely new to linux/unix as well... :(
 
I forgot to mention that it is a laptop.. I think damn small linux is 50mb... might need to nosey around...
I have PCMIA cd rom drive that windows recognises but refuses to read. Hardware or driver problem I am not sure. I do have a serial to serial cable, is that any help?
 
Damn Small Linux is 50 MB, there IS a floppy based linux but thats only good if you want a bash shell, and thats it lol.

You should look for a used PCMCIA NIC and do a network install...

If you had more RAM (300 MB ish) and a decent internet connection you could do a gentoo install from a floppy disk.

As it stands, the PCMCIA slot, either for a CDROM or NIC is your only hope.


If it has internet access, here are a couple ideas:

Download something like Damn Small Linux, extract all the files into a folder, boot up with a floppy disk and start the installer from your DOS prompt.

If it doesnt already have an OS on it (so you cant download anything onto it) you could download Damn Small Linux and possibly spread the files over a stack of floppies and then copy them to the harddrive that way...
 
Is a bash shell the command prompt I put up with when I tried a floppy based linux to see how it is? I know there is that CD-ROM one with a desktop but i only have a 56K so I can't get that lol.
 
Enslaved posted on May 15 2004 at 07:44 PM said:
Is a bash shell the command prompt I put up with when I tried a floppy based linux to see how it is? I know there is that CD-ROM one with a desktop but i only have a 56K so I can't get that lol.

Yes that is the bash shell, the heart of linux. Linux really isnt for you if you dont enjoy a "command prompt" every now and again. I think I spend a good %50 of my time in linux, in a bash shell.
 
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Well with the choice of GUIs, you can get any slick GUI you want, its all about choices. I use KDE, its nice. Gnome isnt bad either, and there are many many more available.

On a happy note, I get to have some fun today! For the past couple years I have always had a small partition on my harddrive for windows, (for those couple apps and games that I just couldnt live without), but today I realized that I havent really been to windows for anything usefull in 6+ months, and dont foresee any need to use it in the future, so its time to remove that cancer!
 
Enslaved posted on May 15 2004 at 08:04 PM said:
OMFG!!! But don't you like playing PC games? I don't really play many but there are some that I need to play cause I dont have PS2/X-BOX (the GTA/Halo series).
All the PC games I play work fine in Wine, WineX or have native linux versions.
C&C, Warcraft3, Dues Ex, GTA3, KOTOR (finally), Max Payne 1 & 2, Homeworld 2, Starcraft, UT2k4, FF7, FF8, Fallout 1 & 2, Decent 3, Quake 1, 2, & 3, Anachonax, and many many more all work fine. I even have all my favorite emulators, ZSNES, ePSXe, etc.. all working fine. Life is good.


There are a few I would like to play that dont work yet, but they are being worked on so they should work soon. Not enough to make me keep that cancer arround anymore.
 
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Enslaved posted on May 15 2004 at 08:12 PM said:
So wine is a full speed windows emulator? And would I still be able to use my cards directx 9 features and stuff?
Wine and WineX are not really emulators, wine stands for "Wine Is Not an Emulator" and in many games I get faster speeds using wine/winex then I do in windows! And yes wine/winex work with DirectX9. WineX plays games like Warcraft 3, Max Payne 2, Knights of the Old Republic, Everquest, etc..., all which use Directx9

for Wine info: http://www.winehq.com/
for WineX info: http://www.transgaming.com/

Wine is more for Apps and WineX for games, although Wine can play many many DirectX games too.

Think of Wine as a Windows compatibility layer. Wine does not require Microsoft Windows, as it is a completely alternative implementation consisting of 100% Microsoft-free code, but it can optionally use native system DLLs if they are available.

Wine Is Not a (CPU) Emulator. Wine just provides the Windows API. This means that you will need an x86-compatible processor to run an x86 Windows application, for instance from Intel or AMD. The advantage is that, unlike solutions that rely on CPU emulation, Wine runs applications at full speed.
 
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Enslaved posted on May 15 2004 at 08:20 PM said:
Ok so if I had windows and Linux on the same computer it would be pretty redundant then right? I want to buy a barebones cheap PC for my room and get linux to replace windows now!
It depends.

Are you a hardcore gamer that cant live without certain games? And you need to play the latest games the day the come out? If so, windows is ...good... to have on your harddrive, because WineX and Wine do not support ALL games, and sometimes it takes a month or more to get compatiblity for a new game.

If you use your PC for web browsing, the occasional game, music, movies, writing documents, chatting, etc..., etc... and dont really care if compatiblity for games is a bit spotty, then there is no reason to have windows on your PC as well as linux.

Remember though, that the newer windows versions are not very game compatible either :p so it all depends on what you want, and what choices there are.


Note also, though, that its not a very good idea to leave windows "cold turkey". Most people I know that drop windows for linux like that, go back to windows within 2 weeks. (kinda like smoking lol), Its good to slowly get yourself into linux. Start using apps in windows that are the same in linux, like openoffice, firefox, gimp, etc..., ween yourself off of windows slowly.
 
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Well I dont really play games that much! :p I mostly just talk on forums and MSN so I guess I should get Linux. Well, its a long time till I get a PC for myself anyways :p I'm going to bed, thanks for the help Akuma no Houkon.
 
Hmm... I like the idea of moving to Linux, but the actuality of it is something I've never managed. Maybe when I next change computer, methinks. Game support does bug me, though... In fact its pretty much the only thing that does, tbh. Oh - and possibly things like configuring internet in it, and, more importantly perhaps, a firewall. Norton might be commercial, but at least seems simple. I really should try to switch again sometime...
 
Tobriand posted on May 15 2004 at 11:41 PM said:
Hmm... I like the idea of moving to Linux, but the actuality of it is something I've never managed. Maybe when I next change computer, methinks. Game support does bug me, though... In fact its pretty much the only thing that does, tbh. Oh - and possibly things like configuring internet in it, and, more importantly perhaps, a firewall. Norton might be commercial, but at least seems simple. I really should try to switch again sometime...
Firewalls are easy to setup and install, you shouldnt worry about them, internet is as simple in linux as it was for you in windows. (basically whatever you did in windows to setup your internet, you do the same in linux, for me thats nothing, my internet is always on, and always works, no setup of any kind nessesary) If you have a dialup winmodem you might have some issues (depends on your modem)

Game Support isnt as bad as you think, its hit an miss of course, but I would say, for me, I get 7 working games for every 10 I try, and support is only getting better. (not to mention more and more companies are making linux native games, like Neverwinter Nights, Unreal Tournament 2003, 2004, Quake 3, Tribes 2, The Sims, etc..
 
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Bloody, Hell.. I missed a bit..

There is something I thnik that might work.. I have a serial to serial cable that I have been using to transfer large files.. Can I transfer Damn Small Linux (DSL) via that and install from floppy then..

Thanks
 
Install DSL via floppy, then spread all your other apps (X, kde whatever) over more floppies and install your proggies slowley one floppy at a time (most individual linux files will fit on a floppy, no?)

Incidently, I love OpenOffice its free fast and better that Microsoft Ofice suite (so :p to Billy!!!). I also use opera and have dabbled in the Gimp, though I still prefer Photoshop. Wasn't there a version of wine that was used SPECIFICALLY to run applications such as Flash, Photoshop and others?

[edit] Which, in everyones opinion, is the better flavour of Linux: Suse pro 8.2 or Fedora 1?
 
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