Member Avatar for newbrobo

here is my dilemna! I recently bought a linux netbook and have found this little go getter, better than other window computers i have had and used. learning the ropes to my root terminal, and picking up every little bit of information i can obtain. which is when I fount this website. For the purpose of creating a stable large mem. cd burning monster on the desktop. I have just also learned about (LFS) but, Would like to know other than buying all the install linux software, if there is anything I might find useful. I am a newb.

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Dani AI

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Short, practical path for experimenting with Linux on an old Windows ME box — no need to buy anything, but plan for a little prep. As warned, Linux From Scratch (LFS) is a great learning project but it’s meant for people who want to build an entire system from source; for hands‑on learning a safer, faster first step is either running a Linux VM or installing a minimal base and building up. Also keep ’s point in mind: very old CPUs and low RAM change which images will work. ()

Do three quick checks before you download anything: (1) back up any files you want from Windows ME, (2) note how much RAM and whether the CPU is 32‑bit or 64‑bit, and (3) boot a small live image to inspect hardware. From a live session you can run simple probes to capture the system report, for example: 

sudo lshw -short
inxi -Fx

Those tools show RAM, CPU, disks, and PCI/USB devices so you can match installers and drivers. (manpages.debian.org)

How to make install media and install on old hardware: if the PC can burn discs, a live CD is the simplest test. If you want a USB installer, modern tools that write ISOs safely include Rufus, Ventoy and balenaEtcher; Ventoy is useful when you want several ISOs on one stick, and Plop can help boot USB on BIOSes that lack native USB boot. For very low‑RAM machines choose a minimal/netinstall image (text installer) rather than a full live desktop — that avoids running a heavy live session while installing. (rufus.ie)

Partitioning and performance notes: keep a backup, leave a swap area sized to your RAM if RAM is under ~1GB (and match or exceed RAM if you plan to hibernate), or create a small swap file instead; use a separate /home if you want to preserve data when reinstalling. If the goal is learning, try a VM first (VirtualBox/QEMU) and only overwrite the ME box once comfortable. (help.ubuntu.com)

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Member Avatar for mooreted

here is my dilemna! I recently bought a linux netbook and have found this little go getter, better than other window computers i have had and used. learning the ropes to my root terminal, and picking up every little bit of information i can obtain. which is when I fount this website. For the purpose of creating a stable large mem. cd burning monster on the desktop. I have just also learned about (LFS) but, Would like to know other than buying all the install linux software, if there is anything I might find useful. I am a newb.

If you're new to Linux LFS is going to be a hard distro to figure out. It's really intended for Linux geeks that want to build their own system.

Just go download Ubuntu and you can learn Linux slowly.

Also, Linux is free you don't have to buy any software.

Member Avatar for Member #46692

Ubuntu definitely, especially if you're new.

Version 10.04 is out and looks sweet. Just check the specs of your machine.

Member Avatar for JasonHippy

Whilst I agree that Ubuntu is a great Linux distro to get started with; Looking at the original post, the title mentions that the PC in question runs Windows ME, which implies to me that the hardware will be quite old. So perhaps a more lightweight distro would be in order.

I'd wager that Ubuntu would most likely be a bit too bloated and heavyweight for a machine of that age. However Xubuntu might be worth a try, dependant on the amount of RAM the PC has. But you'd probably have to use the alternate install CD rather than the liveCD..I think the liveCD of Xubuntu would still be a bit too heavyweight!

Failing that, perhaps WattOS (Ubuntu-based lightweight distro) or Zeven OS (a little known Xubuntu-based lightweight distro).

Otherwise there are plenty of other distros available like Unity, Slitaz, Vector, Zenwalk, Antix, Tiny ME, Puppy and DSL which are all geared towards running on older hardware. But like I said, it does depend on the exact specs of the machine.

There are shed-loads of different Linux distros out there and they're all free. So as long as you have a bit of free-time and a decent internet connection you can download several different versions of Linux per day. My advice is to take some time and shop around a bit. Take a look at , google/search for lightweight linux distros, download some LiveCD's and find the distro that works best for you and your hardware!

Once you've found a distro that works well with your hardware (and also that you like the look and feel of!) then you should consider installing it on your PC!

Cheers for now,
Jas.

Member Avatar for Member #46692

Yeah good points Jason!

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