I decided to write this article after reading (again) the famous Linux quote: Because a 486 is a terrible thing to waste!
In the Linux vs Windows war, Linux is always a winning choice for the old computers. And when I say old, I mean very old, with a less than 1 GH processor and less than 256 MB of RAM memory.
If you are an Ubuntu fan, install a new version of Ubuntu Server without a graphical environment, and install OpenBox on it. Or, you could choose an Ubuntu Minimal version from here.
Examples for 32-bit pc:
- Ubuntu 12.10 “Quantal Quetzal” Minimal CD 28MB – download
- Ubuntu 12.04 “Precise Pangolin” Minimal CD 27MB – download
Examples for 64-bit pc:
- Ubuntu 12.10 “Quantal Quetzal” Minimal CD 34MB – download
- Ubuntu 12.04 “Precise Pangolin” Minimal CD 30MB – download
Other popular really lightweight Linux Distros:
Tinycore – you need 10 MB of space for it.
Damn Small Linux (DSL) , which is Debian based – it is a little bigger than the others, you need 50 MB for it.
Slitaz – you need 30 MB of space for it.
You can also try your luck with U-lite, an Ubuntu based lightweight distro.
Feel free to recommend any other lightweight distro in comments.
Puppy Linux
Antix
CrunchBang
OK,…
those listed above may not work for a 486,…
but should be ok for somewhat later model computers. (I run older PIIIs).