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I've been intrusted in Linux for a while. Recently, I got a fairly old computer, with an Intel Pentium 3 processor. I'm wondering what Linux distro I should run on ...
  1. 03-23-2008 #1
    Geohunter
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    Linux on a pentium 3 computer.

    I've been intrusted in Linux for a while. Recently, I got a fairly old computer, with an Intel Pentium 3 processor. I'm wondering what Linux distro I should run on it. Memory is not a problem, and it has decent RAM. THe only limitations I have are:
    Needs to be a stand alone operating system, not a Live CD or DVD
    Would like to support Mozilla Firefox browser
    Needs to be capable of running on less than 1gig of RAM.

    Does anyone have any reccomendations? I'm pretty lost on this.
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  2. 03-23-2008 #2
    oz
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    Welcome to the forums, Geohunter!

    You should be fine with about anything you want to run. OpenSuse is considered one of the heavier distributions, but even it should run on that machine just fine.

    Check the link in my signature for lots of good information on getting started with Linux, and don't hesitate to post new threads with any new questions.

    Have fun with Linux.
    oz

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  3. 03-23-2008 #3
    dxqcanada
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    I agree with Ozar ... with the amount of RAM that you have you could run most Linux Distributions without a problem.

    I have run many current Distros on older P3's with less mem than you have.

    If you actually want to go slim ... look at Distros that do not use Gnome or KDE ... and not server versions.



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  4. 03-23-2008 #4
    Geohunter
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    Ok, thank you. I've been leaning towards Fedora 8. Slim isn't really an issue. I'm puuting it on a gateway minitower with expanded memory. Anyway, I do want to run KDE or Gnome desktops, or possibly Xfce. Any suggestions on which desktop environment to run?
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  5. 03-23-2008 #5
    oz
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    Quote Originally Posted by Geohunter View Post
    I do want to run KDE or Gnome desktops, or possibly Xfce. Any suggestions on which desktop environment to run?
    It's really a matter of personal tastes, so in the end you'll have to try all of them to know for sure which one suits your own tastes the best. I like all of them quite well, but probably use KDE the most out of the three.
    oz

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  6. 03-23-2008 #6
    Geohunter
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    Ok. I just took that quiz in your sig, and it reccomended openSUSE as the perfect match for my computer. I only have a few questions:
    Can openSUSE run on 512mb of RAM?
    What desktop environment is openSUSE?
    Is it secure?
    What is the most current stable version of it?
    And if my operating system uses all my RAM, can I still play games with it?
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  7. 03-23-2008 #7
    oz
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    Quote Originally Posted by Geohunter View Post
    I only have a few questions:
    Can openSUSE run on 512mb of RAM?
    What desktop environment is openSUSE?
    Is it secure?
    What is the most current stable version of it?
    And if my operating system uses all my RAM, can I still play games with it?
    Yes, OpenSuse should run pretty well on that machine.

    It's probably about as secure as any other distro. You can always take extra security measures with any distribution.

    If I remember correctly, the default environment is Gnome. You can probably install either one at the initial installation.

    The latest version should be as stable as any.

    You'll create a SWAP partition during installation that will be used when your system runs short of RAM.
    oz

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  8. 03-23-2008 #8
    bigvoo
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    you should be fine...I have an old dell 8100 laptop with only 128 of ram, and i run xubuntu on it...I watch youtube on it, and use firefox, I do everything i do on my newer machine except edit video.
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