14-04-2012, 02:07 PM
It can be done, but I have tried on a xeon twin system of similar vinatge and specs and it doesn't work.. and there is a reason.. XP relies on the L2 processor cache and the pentium series (and the xeons from servers too until the 466) until the p3 doesn't have it. Some p2 chips such as the P2-400 do have one, but again while it will install it's very buggy and prone to lockups... Annoyingly if you happen to just miss a button!! (old computers are "my thing".. I'm typing now on a Toshiba laptop circa 1996! with a 366 cpu) Of course there is the other huge windows pitfall.. anti virus.. which will eat ALL your system resources.. Windows 2k would be a better bet.. I can let you have a version which has no "hassleware" registration nonsense.
I would suggest trying linux on it.. with 256 ram you will find Ubuntu 10.4 will install nicely and probably work "out of the box".. but if you want to use it for anything productive you will have to get rid of Gnome and run a light desktop like LXDE or XFCE4.. both are very viable, I use lxde on my 2.8 with a gig of ram 512 graphics card 64 bit beast, and my dell 600/256 arch lappy.. This one is a toshiba portege 366/64 and is running a very mucked about with debian kernel and xfce4.. keep to lightweight applications (there are sleek and fast things like Midori web browser, leafpad text editor and all kinds of things) It works well, even managing to play youtube video passably as long as you keep to "hardcore netters watch video in 240" rules
If you have a cd drive it's very easy.. if not you will have to look in the bios and see if you can network boot the thing, or do a very funky install from those obsolete floppy things .. would you believe there is a viable linux distro which comes on 2 floppies??.. It's also possible to actually do a core system install with the correct network hardware drivers in another box and then swap the drives.. all you need is working network and a core prompt and you are away
Interesting topic.. right up my street
I would suggest trying linux on it.. with 256 ram you will find Ubuntu 10.4 will install nicely and probably work "out of the box".. but if you want to use it for anything productive you will have to get rid of Gnome and run a light desktop like LXDE or XFCE4.. both are very viable, I use lxde on my 2.8 with a gig of ram 512 graphics card 64 bit beast, and my dell 600/256 arch lappy.. This one is a toshiba portege 366/64 and is running a very mucked about with debian kernel and xfce4.. keep to lightweight applications (there are sleek and fast things like Midori web browser, leafpad text editor and all kinds of things) It works well, even managing to play youtube video passably as long as you keep to "hardcore netters watch video in 240" rules
If you have a cd drive it's very easy.. if not you will have to look in the bios and see if you can network boot the thing, or do a very funky install from those obsolete floppy things .. would you believe there is a viable linux distro which comes on 2 floppies??.. It's also possible to actually do a core system install with the correct network hardware drivers in another box and then swap the drives.. all you need is working network and a core prompt and you are away
Interesting topic.. right up my street
