February 28, 2006

Giving mouth to mouth to your old PC

If, like me, you have an old PC lying around the house gathering dust, but you can't quite bring yourself to junk it yet, I have a suggestion that can extend the life of the PC: use Linux. Joe Brockmeier put a Pentium II 233 MHz machine with 64 Mb RAM through the paces using several Linux variants. Excerpt:


Microsoft lately has been challenging Linux's suitability for older hardware, so it seems like a good time to look at Linux distributions that can run on older machines. I took six distributions for a test run on an old machine, and also tried software that turns old hardware into a thin client. The bottom line: Linux is still quite suitable for older hardware. It might not turn your aging PC into a powerhouse, but it will extend its lifespan considerably.

For these tests, I dug out Igor, an old PC that had been collecting dust in my closet. Igor is a Pentium II 233MHz machine with 64MB of RAM, an 8x CD-ROM drive, a 3GB hard drive, and an integrated ATI 3D Rage Pro video card with 4MB of video RAM. You can run Linux on older and slower machines, but this is the most under-powered machine I had available.

Next, I selected a handful of lightweight Linux distributions that looked promising, and started downloading. The distributions ranged from popular "mainstream" distros such as Slackware and Debian to distros that are specifically developed for lightweight machines, such as Damn Small Linux (DSL). I apologize in advance if your favorite lightweight distro is not represented here.
...
While Linux is good for bringing new life to old hardware, users may need to make some concessions for really old machines. Most applications aren't written with older machines in mind. If you want to use a desktop environment on a machine that's nearly 10 years old, it will probably require some patience on your part. If you don't mind waiting 20 or 30 seconds for an application to start up, older machines will probably suit you just fine.

You may also run into limitations in terms of what devices you can use with the hardware. For instance, my test machine doesn't have USB ports. Sometimes older hardware can be advantageous, though -- finding drivers for cutting-edge hardware is sometimes difficult, but that four-year old video card should be well-supported by now.

If you want or need to keep using hardware past its expected life span, it should be obvious that it isn't going to keep up with today's hardware. Whether you're using Linux, Windows, Mac OS X, BSD, or something else, most of the applications being written for these platforms require additional resources with each release.

That said, many lightweight open source application alternatives exist for users who want to use older hardware. KDE and GNOME may not be suitable for older hardware, but Fluxbox, Xfce, FVWM, IceWM, and other window managers are just fine. Lightweight GUI applications and console apps also shine on older hardware. OpenOffice.org may be sluggish on older machines, but AbiWord runs well on less robust hardware, as does Siag Office -- and it's hard to notice a difference at all when you're using Vim or Mutt. Older machines also make excellent file servers, firewalls, and routers.

I have an old 400 MHz machine sitting in a corner of my office at home which, I believe, is dying to be used again. And I don't think that it will mind too much when I remove Windows from the hard drive.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 09:24 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 606 words, total size 4 kb.

February 22, 2006

Puppy love part deux

If you're in the market for a ridiculously small Linux distro, I'd like to recommend Puppy Linux v.1.08. I mentioned the first release back here.


Puppy's claim to fame is that it has a small footprint yet is full-featured, including all sorts of configuration and application installation wizards. Puppy boots into a 64MB ramdisk and the whole OS is small enough to run directly from system RAM. The result is that all applications start quickly and respond to user input instantly. Another advantage is that Puppy can often be a great choice for old, under-powered hardware.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:03 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 104 words, total size 1 kb.

February 18, 2006

Alternatives for Windows' programs

One of the reasons that people hesitate when switching from Windows to some other OS is that they don't want to lose their favorite applications. Well, here are some alternatives that you might not have heard of:


By a good margin, Adobe Photoshop is the one application that most people want ported to Linux, Morris said. Free and open-source software (FOSS) already available for Linux that have similar feature sets to Photoshop include:

* Pixel Image Editor
* The GIMP
* Krita (Part of Koffice)
* Photoshop also works with WINE

"So, if you're looking to get Photoshop ported to Linux, you might give these suggestions a try [in the meantime]," Morris said.

Many suggestions were listed as replacements for Autodesk AutoCAD, including:

* VariCAD, which has a version specifically designed for SUSE Linux
* LinuxCAD
* arcad
* Cycas
* Synergy

"After checking these applications out a little, some of them look pretty slick. If you need a CAD app, check these out," Morris said.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 11:10 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 172 words, total size 1 kb.

February 07, 2006

Replacing Windows

When you've tired of fixing broken Windows, and are ready to move on to Linux, you're probably confused as to which Linux you should try. After all, there are hundreds of competing Linux distros out there, which is probably one of the bigger reasons why Linux has such a hard time taking on Microsoft. However, you as a typical user can reduce the number of choices dramatically. Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols has the scoop. Excerpt:

I think the best Linux desktop is the one that's best for a particular person based on their needs and level of Linux expertise. So, the next time someone asks you that question, I suggest you reply with a couple of questions of your own.

For example, you could ask, "Do you want to replace Windows? For home? For work? Are you interested in Linux because you want to get some new life out of an old system? Do you just want to mess around with Linux?" And so on...

Then, once you know where they're coming from, you can give the best possible answer.

For what it's worth, here's what I'd tell someone today based on some of the more common answers I get to my questions.

I want a home Windows replacement.

For these folks, I have an additional question: "Do you want just the software basics, or do you want to shop around for other open-source software?"

If they just want the basics, I recommend Xandros Inc.'s eponymous Xandros 3 Desktop. The Xandros line has been meant from the start to persuade Windows users to give Linux a try.

In my experience, Xandros is the closest to Windows XP you're going to get with a Linux system. Now, for some of you, I know that's the last thing you want, but for someone who knows Windows well, it may be exactly what they want and need.

On the other hand, Xandros doesn't have a lot of ready-to-use software outside of the basic package. If your friend really wants to try out a lot of Linux software but couldn't tell apt-get from an RPM, then Linspire Inc.'s Linspire Five-0 is the Linux for you.

I know it's fashionable in some Linux purist circles to make fun of Linspire, but it's well past time to get over that nonsense. Linspire is a good, solid Debian-based Linux, and like Xandros, it goes out of its way to be new-user friendly.

Linspire also far out-does Xandros with its easy-to-use CNR (click and run) new software installation system. With CNR, even your grandma can install Linux programs.

If your friend wants more than just something that looks like XP, but looks like a particular Windows set up, they should also check out the combination of Versora's Progression Desktop and Win4Lin's Win4Lin Pro.

Progression Desktop migrates Windows and Windows programs' settings and data from Windows to many Linuxes, including Xandros and Linspire. For example, you can use it to transfer Outlook on Windows messages to Thunderbird on Linux. Win4Lin enables you to run Windows 2000 or XP as a virtual machine in Linux. The companies have bundled these together to make a single package.

While I haven't had a chance to really review this combo, I have tried it out with Xandros and an XP set up, and it does seem to deliver the goods. Look for a real review of the pairing soon, here at DesktopLinux.com

As it is, I've tested about 13 separate livd CD Linux distros, but still haven't come to a decision, although I'm leaning towards Slackware Linux. Eventually I'll choose. When I do, I'll post a report here.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 12:57 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 608 words, total size 4 kb.

How do you fix Windows?

In my opinion, a crowbar and/or an incendiary device will work just fine. However, if, unlike me, you're not in the mood to chuck your Microsoft driven PC out a second floor window yet, you might want to check out this article, which gives some great information on how to fix Windows' error. Recovering data when your operating system goes BOOM! is also covered. The solution is, not surprisingly, to use a bootable Knoppix CD.


If your Windows system crashes completely and cannot be recovered using the registry editor or the boot.ini, you may face some serious problems if important data on the system wasn't backed up. Knoppix can come to your rescue by enabling you to access your Windows partition and save your important data to multiple devices for restoration later. These devices include USB jump drives (also called flash drives or key drives), CD-Rs and DVD-Rs, and copying data over the network. This section explains how to recover and save the data that you'll restore after you have re-installed Windows following a crash.

Preparing for Data Recovery The most common mistake when recovering data from a system is failing to retrieve all of it because of haste. What you leave behind is typically the data you end up needing the most, so take your time and ensure you are capturing everything valuable. The most common area for data storage is in the Documents and Settings folder (usually /mnt/hda1/Documents and Settings), which is Windows' default for saving most of all users documents, music, pictures, and so on. If there are any non-standard directories into which you or your users save data, consider those as well.

Look, I understand why most people don't want to switch from Linux to Windows. It's still a geeky, not quite ready for primetime operating system. I'm an enormous nerd and I have issues getting a printer installed. However, the advantages of using a fully functional OS, with all of the associated bells and whistles, for data recovery purposes cannot be overlooked. Trust me when I tell you that the Microsoft recovery floppy disk that I've used in the past does not give you much beyond the ability to use your CD-ROM drive. If nothing else, having a bootable Linux CD around provides some piece of mind. Unless your PC catches fire and the hard drive slags down and stops spinning, you'll be able to recover most of your data in the event of a Windows crash.

Don't live Knoppix? Fine. Use Damn Small Linux , which comes in around a whopping 50Mb.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 09:43 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 438 words, total size 3 kb.

February 01, 2006

Recovering data

Do you use a USB flash drive? Do you want to know if it's possible to recover deleted/lost data? It is. Excerpt:


If you need help recovering data which you have accidentally deleted, you are in luck. This is the problem with the most simple solution and the highest chance of success, so long as the deleted data has not been overwritten. In order to recover the deleted information you simply need to employ a program which can read the drive for you information and restore it. Some freeware options for task can be found here.

If you have written over your deleted data or even formatted the drive the chance of recovering your data is less than before but there is still hope. Your best bet is to try Photo Rec, a free program which works with almost any OS, including Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, and even Solaris. Downloads are available here. The program may see strange at first, but with some time is has proven to work well.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 03:56 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 173 words, total size 1 kb.

<< Page 1 of 1 >>
34kb generated in CPU 0.0138, elapsed 0.0656 seconds.
90 queries taking 0.057 seconds, 219 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.