old XP computer

[pgp]

I have a old Win XP computer, it locks up or freezes a bit while using it. I took off many programs did a defrag etc. I was thinking of putting another os on it to play around. Any suggestions ? It`s a back up computer to get on the internet if my other 3 fail at the same time.

[512detail]

red hat

is that even still around?

[Fast Eddie]

Target practice.

[ShawnF350]

Knoppix (live DVD)
You can run it from the DVD but I install it to a USB stick. It`s then an operating system you can take anywhere.


KNOPPIX - Live Linux Filesystem On CD

[GearHead_1]

red hat

is that even still around?

It certainly is at the Enterpise level. Don`t know if they deal with the individual consumer anymore.

[ShaneB]

Are you sure it`s the OS? If it`s a PC that was new during the XP days, then my guess is its pretty old. I would suspect you have a hardware issue. It could be any number of things. And unless you`re pretty knowledgeable in PC hardware, it won`t be easy for you to figure out.

easiest thing may be to clean it out. Have you ever blown out the inside? One reason you may be having issues could be your CPU overheating. If you have never blown the inside out then I bet there is a significant amount of dust buildup that can cause cooling issues.

besides that, you could have a faulty CPU, maybe the fan on its heat sink went bad, your memory could be dying, your hard drive could be failing etc. Tough to tell with such an old PC. Probably not worth the time and effort needed to repair. Not to mention you may have a hell of a time finding replacement parts if you do indeed figure it out.

time for the scrap bin

[JSFM35X]

What weapons do you own ? 22 will do or a 45. Take out hard driver before and hammer to pieces and mess up connection pins. Can`t be to careful these days.

[pgp]

I built it several years ago. I have had several hard drives in it and I do clean it now and then. It has not been a primary computer for a few years. It is old, something to mess with at this point. I never used any other os`s than windows. I don`t own any weapons.

[ShaneB]

Well, if you`re dead set on tinkering with it, remove every component that isn`t absolutely necessary to make it boot up and see if your problem goes away. If it does work fine after that, then you can add one component at a time until it starts acting up, then you`ve found your problem. This includes removing all but a single stick of memory too (if you have more than 1)

If you still have a problem with the bare minimum, you`ll need to start swapping one component at a time with a known good one (from a working system or used spare) until your problem goes away. Then you`ve found the issue.

IMO, a ton more trouble than its really worth. Good luck!

[Swanicyouth]

1. Take out the hard drive

2. Buy a Mac

3. Through it in the woods some place, because I don`t think trash guys are supposed to take them.

[grungy]

If you want a free OS, the Fedora (from RedHat), OpenSuse or Ubuntu would all be good choices to play with.

-grungy

[JohnZ3MC]

You want to have a look at some of the Linux variants and I`ve included a link below of ones that`ll work well with your old machine. I`m running Puppy Linux on one of my older machines and it works really well.

Top 5 lightweight Linux distros for older PCs | Expert Reviews

Distro = distribution of course.
So, maybe give Puppy Linux a try and if it`s not your cup of tea, you can always reformat the HD and reinstall XP with the obligatory save your data before the reformat of course.

If you lived closer to me, I`d tell you to bring the old XP machine over and I could probably get it working well again but BC - Utah is a bit of a stretch.

[pgp]

I wanted to do a clean install of xp, I could not register it since it`s not supported anymore. My gut feeling it`s the os, but it`s old and could be anything. I searched replacement os for xp. I saw Mint 18 and zorin that looked interesting. JohnZ3MC I will look into that article too.

[nothingface5384]

forget XP get lsome form of linux or unix/DEBIAN
debian xfce
zorin os
linux mint lite
unbuntu

just do live version prior to installing to make sure everything works
some dont always work with certain printers

zorin is best if you want it to look like a windows OS..can change environments to look like 2000 , xp, 7
Ive been liking Debian os the most out of the many ive tried
pepermint os is also another lightweight os

since you have a XP system..i take it you only have 512mb or 1GB of RAM...so def go with the lite versions..otherwise things will be slow

[JohnZ3MC]

PGP,
Nothingface raises an interesting point about ram. If you wanted to try a more robust version like he mentions, you`ll need more ram. I have quite a stockpile of older ram so if you`re adventuresome, pop out one of your existing ram sticks and tell me what is is or take a photo and I`ll send you more ram if I have any. Free of course, shipping will be dirt cheap I`m thinking.