Since you don't need so many programs, i would recommend a distro, which is quite small. It depends further on wether you require an easy install, or if you would pay some attention to it. For the latter you could take Debian, Arch, Gentoo (well, that's somewhat more work-intensive
) or any other lightweight distro. Distros like Suse are perhaps too oversized for your computer and your 'profile'.
You should consider using solely an window manager (like fvwm, fluxbox...) and not a desktop environment like Gnome or KDE, because your computer is a bit older.
(Hoping i didn't tell you things you already knew
)
Ogion
Linear Mode
