New to Linux - BIOS before 2000?

[Dr. Michael J. Chudobiak]

On 05/21/2010 07:41 AM, Alan Cox wrote:
>>> it give me an error saying my BIOS was 1997 and I needed a a 2000 BIOS
>>> or better.  The machine has a Pentium 3 with 550 MHz CPU with over 700
>>> Megs memory but a small hard drive of just 10 Gigs
>>
>> To be honest, I think the CPU slowness, perhaps the RAM, and drive size
>> are probably going to be a big problem, too.
>>
>> I've got servers with similar specs, and they run fine.  But a for a
>> workstation generating a video display, low specced computers get a bit
>> painfully slow.
>
> You want plenty of RAM and a sensible desktop. There are several ways to
> run Linux on small platforms and removing all the crud some of the
> desktop people have written is an enormous improvement.
>
> XFCE + claws is snappy on old machines.

Adding a SATA card and an Intel solid-state drive will probably work 
wonders too.

- Mike