Good work on the specs, Anne! Here's my two cents:
A 233 MHz processor, even with the memory, is going to be really slow in X-windows in MDK 9.0, and tolerable in MDK 8.2. Again, this is based on using KDE, not lighter, more streamlined versions of WMs. As I mentioned before, I have a similar box used for the kids and guests. There has been some talk on the listserv about special kernel considerations for AMD CPUs, but my guess on that was for current generation CPUs, not the older ones like yours. I am running MDK 9.0 on an AMD K6/2-500 MHz box with no concerns. Memory at 128 MBs is fine. 64 MBs will work for MDK 8.2, probably not for MDK 9.0. You didn't mention what the onboard cache memory is. For a board of that age group, my guess is that you have as much as 512k, but possibly 256k. If you have the former, going over 128 MBs in RAM will actually make the computer run slower as it is not able to cache over 128 MBs with that amount. If the latter, I would go and put the 128 MBs in and not worry about it, as the quantity of memory will be more important than any reduction in performance. Stick with DIMMs. Mixing the two is not simply a matter of placing the memory physically in the slots. There are several factors that are very technical, and not worth the bother. Your board is setup to run PC100 memory, or memory that clocks at 100 MHz. Make sure that you buy memory that is the same clock speed. Don't even consider buying SIMMs. Just a big waste of money. The BIOS date on the motherboard is old, pre-1988, which means that you may have some concerns in getting a new hard drive to work with this system. How large is the hard drive you plan on using? If it is too big, you will need to either flash the BIOS with an update (you need to know who made the motherboard, check their site, if they have one, download the update and apply it) or add BIOS Update Card to an ISA slot. the cards are not cheap at around $40-$50 USD. But, if a BIOS update can't be found, it the only way to use a drive that would be out of the BIOS's ability to work with. Most drives come with software designed to handle older BIOS's, but they are designed to load in an MS-DOS environment. So, if you are looking for max sizes on a drive, something around 8 Gigs is it. I couldn't find anything specific on the S3 video card you have now. harddrake would probe the S3 chip and figure out what generic driver to use. However, if you are going to use this card, in test, I strongly urge you to install in Expert mode and specifically pick the 3.3.6 version of X-server. Even then, there's no guarantee that you will find the right combinations of frequencies to make X-windows come up. Trial and error, even if the card is supported. I have no experience with the newer generation Diamond video cards, so I can't offer any help as top whether the Diamond/Voodoo combination will work well. If the card is new, go with the 4.2.2 X-server. If it is older? Which ever one works best for you, or at all. XFree86 3.3.6 gives better 3D support on older accelerated cards (so it says on the install screen). NICs using the Realtek chips are fine for Linux. They are the most common outside of 3Coms and they are picked up by Linux readily enough. Questions: 1) Monitor? 2) Hard Drive capacity? 3) Sound Card? 4) Modem? 5) Anything else? Does this help any? T :-) ----- Original Message ----- From: "Anne Wilson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Wednesday, November 20, 2002 7:19 AM Subject: Re: [newbie] Min spec On Tuesday 19 Nov 2002 12:38 pm, Technoslick wrote: > Tell us more about the specs for this older box, Anne. This the perfect > place to find if anyone has had any problems with older components in > Linux. > > > T OK - this is what I have gleaned so far - M'board - Mainboard Pentium MMX - driver disk is name PC100 CPU AMD 6x86MX 233 BIOS date 7/15/95 Current RAM is 2x16 + 2x32 Mb (96 in all) in SIMMS. Manual says Mobo 'Supports 3 banks of FP/EDO SIMM/DIMM and SDRAM DIMM expandable memory up to 384 Mb'. It also says that it can mix SIMMS and DIMMS, using SIMM banks 3-4 and the two DIMM slots (they quote equally loaded, but I don't know whether it is necessary, or whether it reflects availability of DIMMS at that time). Current video - VidelExcel S3 ---- Proposed changes - Diamond graphics card + Voodoo accelerator (I don't know whether this is the same Voodoo card that Ronald meant - it may be earlier) which appears to have chipsets labelled 3Dfx. Realtek NIC 128Mb DIMM - I presume no-one is going to recommend keeping the 64Mb SIMMS? ---- Any comments/suggestions welcomed - even if it is 'forget it' :-) Anne ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft? Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft? Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
