[plug] Free CD linux - any good ?

[Beau Kuiper]

On Fri, 30 Mar 2001 09:35, Mike Holland wrote:
> On Fri, 30 Mar 2001, Peter Wright wrote:
> > > The 486s have long ago gone to the dump, except some laptops such as
> > > the one that started this thread.
> >
> > Well... actually I suspect you'll find that quite a few people on the
> > list will still be using 486's (and perhaps even 386's) in home server
> > roles.
>
> OK. In my case, the 486 server was long ago replaced when the P120 retired
> from desktop use.
>   Another headless 486 was dedicated to Win95 & VNC, but has been replaced
> by VMware & Win4lin software.
>
> > Imagine the sort of case where a home computer enthusiast might well have
> > an old machine sitting unused in a cupboard while he (or she - but most
> > likely he) does all his stuff (games, office shit, devel work, whatever)
> > on his latest high-end megabeasty machine.
>
> An enthusiast would have been through two more generations between the 486
> and "latest high-end". Why not pull the pentium/686/celeron300 out of the
> cupboard?    I understand your argument. It just seems a few years out of
> date.

Ha, most computer enthusiasts also have more than one computer.

>
> > trying to say is that I believe there is still a significant minority of
> > people using Linux on 486 or lower spec machines[1][2], and while I have
> > no
>
> No point arguing, but I'd be interested if anyone had any reliable
> numbers.
>
> > [1] And probably a larger percentage than, for example, Linux users as a
> > percentage of all computer users.
>
> That aint saying much :)
>
> > Andrew. He runs our entire house network (at least 12 active machines)
> > through one 386 machine acting as nameserver and default internet
> > gateway.
>
> I can hear the Yorshire accents starting up, and a thread about tin cans,
> string, and 1200 baud manual-dial modems.
>   Let me start by saying the the Uni Computer Club (founded 1975) made
> their first keyboards from alfoil and cardboard. (sadly no longer
> supported by most Linux distros)

Most computer enthusiests are not excessivly rich Mike. I could only afford 
to get rid of my last 486 about a month ago. I see many, many people in far 
worse situations than me. People who haven't even upgraded past a pentium 
chip yet.

At workplaces, there is always a shortage of good computers. 486's are often 
the only things that lay around the place and can be put into service without 
stealing someone elses machine.

486's are still incredibly useful machines, esp the one that started this 
thread. A 133mhz 486 can run a good deal of daemons, compile a 2.2 kernel is 
15 minutes. Now XT's, thats a tin can and string machine.

The poor uni student
Beau Kuiper
kuiperba at cs.curtin.edu.au