Mepis Linux / AMD K62 / Pentium III : yes, it'll run

[Saist]

Finished a pet project of mine over the weekend. As most people have heard, Microsoft finally launched Vista, bugs and all, at the end of January, and the standard responses have begun to surface. The hardware requirements to actually run Vista at the same performance level as Xp are nowhere near the "minimum" specifications Microsoft Gives. In most cases, users who purchased "new" computers even half a year ago may find themselves on the short of the stick when it comes to running Vista.

So, I pose the question, what hardware do you need to run a Modern Linux Operating System at a comfortable rate? Would a modern, scratch, Beta release Linux Operating System run smoothly on hardware from 8 years ago?

Enter an AMD K6-2 Chomper Extended and an Intel Pentium3 Katmai, both clocked at 500mhz. Both fed with 384megs of memory, the maximum that most motherboards from 1998 and 1999 could accept, and running a PCI Radeon AIW.  (the original Radeon AIW, with a year 2000 production marking on the PCB).

The result?

http://www.mepisguides.com/Mepis-6/video/what_can_you_use.html

For those who don't want to follow the link, the Katmai turned in a smoother overall feel than the K6-2, which I think is due to it's cache management being a little more effective. Anyways, yes, it is quite possible to run a Linux Distribution using some of the latest code comfortably, on a computer with parts from 1998 and 1999.

[Aridas]

Mostly because things don't really change all that much... It's not rocket science.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Which kernel is that pulling, and which X version?