OLD Hp

[weazel6265]

What I have had success with problem case computers:
download DSL (damn small linux) and boot from a usb thumb drive so you can access internet, etc
use that to download unetbootin, with whatever flavor you want.
Success!

This is assuming you have an old ethernet card to throw in it, based on the specs you have usb but no ethernet.

Hope that helps

[aintnothang]

Thanks!!!!I will have to buy one of those cards and try that. Hope it boots from the thumb drive though...

[chaksq]

It is true Linux handles old hard well some of the time. The new releases of the popular distros such as Ubuntu or Fedora do not run well on older hardware out of the box. They are more geared to taking advantage of newer hardware. If you are fairly new to linux I do recommend those distros but not on older hardware. You may be able to get away with using Xubuntu which is a somewhat lighter version of Ubuntu but packaged with the Xfce window manager rather than gnome. Although I have Xubuntu on some older dual P3 server machines and it runs slow even with 2gb of ram (which was a lot back when the system was made).

If you want a system to run clean and be fairly easy to use I recommend using XP Professional with SP2. Fresh installs run great.

[weazel6265]

I'm not quite sure why, but I have had much more success with the unetbootin, instead of an install cd. When I tried various ubuntu versions from 5.10 to the current, on three different systems, the cd install came out buggy (using a burned cd, and also using a cd from the mail). After several attempts, I was about to give up, but then I tried the unetbootin, which has come off clean every time. I don't attempt to explain it.

And by the way chaksq, the systems are respectively 512mb, 768mb, and 1 gb, each of which are running fine on a full install of ubuntu. The 512 is definitely older hardware, and there hasn't been a problem after a network install.

[chaksq]

And by the way chaksq, the systems are respectively 512mb, 768mb, and 1 gb, each of which are running fine on a full install of ubuntu. The 512 is definitely older hardware, and there hasn't been a problem after a network install.

I know it works on older hardware but it can run quite a bit slow, my server takes 10 min or more to boot. When I popped a drive with XP im it booted considerably faster.

[aintnothang]

I go to the link to download dsl and the boot floppy and they won't work. Any alternate sources?

[weazel6265]

If it supports booting from usb I would suggest the guide I used:
http://www.pendrivelinux.com/2007/01...n-one-usb-dsl/

I'm not sure if you mean the links don't work, or the programs don't work (on your machine).
If it is the links, just go to:
http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/download.html
and find a different mirror.
If you are attempting to boot from usb you are looking for a file that has embedded in the filename, otherwise I think you want the normal version

[aintnothang]

For some reason earlier the links wouldn't work. I will have to get the boot floppy to make it boot from the usb drive...hope it works!