Damn Small Linux - Not!

dougz · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 29

I've read through all of the posts and see that DSL & DSL-N do well on "obsolete" laptops. However, I'm not sure what criteria you folks use to judge performance.

I'd like to start shopping for a used notebook for DSL. Would also need ethernet, wifi, and USB. The lappy would be for occasional use when travelling and doing testing, not as a main machine, so I'd like to be economical. Doesn't need to be real zippy.

What CPU and Memory specs would you recommend for "reasonable" Firefox and Thunderbird performance? (I know that "resaonable" is very subjective.) FWIW, Weber's DSL book recommends a minimum of 300 MHz and 64 MB for DSL-N.

As good as Dillo is, sometimes I need Firefox with a couple of extensions. I'm willing to run just one app at a time. Multimedia would be a plus, but not a requirement.

TIA, dougz

roberts · Joined: 17 Apr 2006 Posts: 320 Location: OC CA USA

Personally I favor the ultralight "obsolete" laptops.
My absolute favorite is the Thinkpad 240 the 400Mhz 192MB
Both DSL/DSL-N run great on these small ultalights.
I use fb800x600.

I also have run DSL-N on the Sony Picturebook C1V
This is a tiny tiny laptop. It uses the crusoe transmeta CPU at 667Mhz with 128MB ram. It requires the XFree86,unc to get full non-standard screen, a 1024x480 letter box screen. Weights a slight 2.1 lbs.
This machine is slower than its rating. The overhead of the crusoe processor.

And finally I have also run DSL-N on a Sharp Actius MM10.
This has built-in wireless a crusoe 1Ghz processor with 256MB.
Everything works including the wireless, also a 2.1 lb marvel.

I have run DSL on a Thinkpad 240 64MB 300Mhz with acceptable performance. But with Gtk2 apps like DSL-N I would try to get at least 128MB.

A 32MB laptop is not practical with the Gtk2 apps that you mentioned.

Of course a full sized laptop like the Thinkpad T20 runs DSL-N great.
My issue with full sized lappies is the battery life and most run hot.

Anyway, that's my experience.
Good Luck.

dougz · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 29

Thank you. It's nice to get numbers from a [u]very[/u] authoritative source.

Looks like lots of nice "obsolete" notebooks will fit my requirements and budget.