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What should i do with an old-arss P233 System i just got?!?!?

scarfase99

Diamond Member
Ok, so i just helped this lady with her new P4 2.0 ghz computer, so rather than pay me she gave me her friggin old ass Pentium 233 system 😛 ok, it's totally complete, has about 2 gb of HD, so here's some ideas i had:

A) Experiment with Linux on it (even though i know nothing about programming)

B) set it up as a Router (connect it using a wireless adapter & then sharing its connection)

C) Setting it up as a web terminal....not sure where 😛

D) Any other ideas? i already have an HTPC, so no need for an mp3 server.

E) Maybe a web server? but it'd prolly need more space & i don't even know how to start one.

F) Your ideas
 
If I had a spare machine... my first choice would be the Router project..

Oh yes.. definately.. a router..
swweeeeeeet
 
hmmm...i like that gala idea 😛

how hard would it be to set it up as a router? what would be the benefit/drawbacks to it?
 
Originally posted by: axiom
The mass acceptances of compiling the software from basic code to application.
Make
Make install
make clean

That's my guess.

So, that's considered programming now? I guess that's kinda like how people think that because they can go into the bios and select "1800mhz" instead of the stock 1600, they're hardware hackers?
 
My idea -- send it to me, and I'll be able to load DOS on it to run all of my old -- er, vintage -- games.
 
ok, maybe programming was a bad use, but you do have to compile drivers and such, blah blah. I honestly don't know much about Linux, but really have a Curiosity itch for why it's so popular. But how effectively would it run on this machine? and how hard would it be to learn for a novice as myself?
 
Originally posted by: scarfase99
ok, maybe programming was a bad use, but you do have to compile drivers and such, blah blah. I honestly don't know much about Linux, but really have a Curiosity itch for why it's so popular. But how effectively would it run on this machine? and how hard would it be to learn for a novice as myself?

the installers on modern linux distros (i.e. redhat 8) are no more difficult to use than the windows installer, and they automatically will detect most hardware (definitely anything in a machine that old will be supported).

It would be slow on that machine. imagine running win2k on that machine, and it'd be similar to that (assuming you're going to install a GUI for your linux distro)

Linux isn't hard to learn, it's just different.
 
You can do A, B, E all at the same time w/ Linux...

P233 is pretty good already... I still run linux on my P100...
 
I put a bigass HD in a similar machine and use it as my all-purpose multimedia machine. I tracked down one of the older SB Live daughtercards with the RCA jacks and an old vid card with a TV-out. Use the TV as the monitor, queue up a big playlist of mp3's for parties and let 'er rip. Very handy and sounds great since it's going through my stereo rather than the PC speaker setup.
 
so the benefit of running a linux on it would be i could do more crap with it? is it really gonna run as slow as a Win2k?

more ideas! this is fun 😛
 
Originally posted by: Fausto1
I put a bigass HD in a similar machine and use it as my all-purpose multimedia machine. I tracked down one of the older SB Live daughtercards with the RCA jacks and an old vid card with a TV-out. Use the TV as the monitor, queue up a big playlist of mp3's for parties and let 'er rip. Very handy and sounds great since it's going through my stereo rather than the PC speaker setup.

Good one! I'll have to try that out. Wonder how Winamp would hold up under a P133?

- M4H
 
Make it a Linux router, that combines two things in one 🙂
I have an old P166, but it's got no HDD. If I had a spare one I'd set it up as a Linux box, cos I always wanted to experiment with it. That would be my first choice.
 
Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire
Originally posted by: Fausto1
I put a bigass HD in a similar machine and use it as my all-purpose multimedia machine. I tracked down one of the older SB Live daughtercards with the RCA jacks and an old vid card with a TV-out. Use the TV as the monitor, queue up a big playlist of mp3's for parties and let 'er rip. Very handy and sounds great since it's going through my stereo rather than the PC speaker setup.

Good one! I'll have to try that out. Wonder how Winamp would hold up under a P133?

- M4H
Probably fine. I mean, all you're asking the proc to deal with is sound and simple video if you want the WMP-style "music visualizations" stuff on your TV at the same time.....it's kinda spiffy for parties (and has the added benefit of preventing most people from turning on the game and pooching the flow of your party by sucking all the men into the boob tube....women hate that 😛 )

The SB Live + daughtercards are kinda hard to find, but are a lot cheaper than the full-blown Audigy 2's or similar. Voodoo 3 w/TV-out works fine for the vid stuff.
 
I had the same question about a year ago.

I installed Linux on a PII 333. After I ran installation, and setup Samba it just sits there. 😛 lol. Much too difficult for me to learn a brand new OS. Why do I have to run all these shell commands, when in windows I can just double click to install. 😀

I thought about the router project, but I passed on that becuase the computer would have to be one 24/7 then, as then the other comps connected through it won't be online.

As far as the MP3 station, I have no stereo to hook it up to, so I passed on that.

 
if you need a tax right off (assuming you have taxable income), or even if you don't

freshen up the software

donate it to your local elementary or middle school

tax right off

get some little hacker started out right!
 
Originally posted by: heartsurgeon
if you need a tax right off (assuming you have taxable income), or even if you don't

freshen up the software

donate it to your local elementary or middle school

tax right off

get some little hacker started out right!


Or donate it to a daycare. The games little kids play would not stress that machine at all.
 
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