Hey guys, I'm a Windows veteran and total Linux noob (read 'zero Linux exposure'). My old P4 (32-bit) desktop has been gathering dust ever since XP's end-of-life so I'm thinking I'd format the HDD and install a Linux distro. In that regard I came across a brief review of ChaletOS (https://sourceforge.net/projects/chaletos/?source=typ_redirect) which seems to 'fit the bill'(?). A search of this forum didn't come up with anything on ChaletOS so if anyone here has any experience with the distro, I'd appreciate your feedback.
It's based on Xubuntu, but I'm wondering if your old machine is strong enough. I'd suggest Lubuntu instead, and a LTS version. http://lubuntu.net/ https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Lubuntu/GetLubuntu/LTS
Thanks for your feedback (seems like your telling me Lubuntu is lighter than Xubuntu)... I think I'll try running ChaletOS from a USB stick. If it runs fairly well I would expect pretty good performance after installing to HDD. Otherwise I'll give Lubuntu a go (as you suggested) to see how well it performs.
I agree with @fblais using a Lubuntu-based distro on older hardware, although you may find Chalet works fine for you. I'm using LXLE, an Ubuntu/Lubuntu-based, 14.04 LTS and I'm really happy with it. It runs lighter on my old hardware than anything else I've used.
Of course, better compare both of them! 14.04 reaches end of life soon, so possibly better to get 16.04 LTS instead. The LTS life cycle is three years. It still runs after EOL, but doesn't get updates.
Where Lubuntu runs, Xubuntu runs equally well, I've made the experience. I'm not familiar with ChaletOS but since it's based on Xubuntu 16.04 which I'm using (and recommend) I'd say go for it.
Well today I decided to install Chalet and I must say that it is beautiful (from a Windows user perspective)! However an intitial performance observation is that it doesn't run any faster on my old P4 desktop than did XP (it actually takes much longer for Chalet to boot to the desktop than did XP)!
You may need to use an older version since many distros are dropping support for x86 legacy PCs. Something to keep in mind.
I don't think those distos are making a smart decision. There are still a heck of a lot of XP PCs out there (like mine) that can't run any of the more current Windows versions, so they present a Linux opportunity!
So what's the verdict, is ChaletOS a keeper? Besides boot time does it run well? btw could you post the specs of your machine?
I considered it, but it seemed that it takes a lot of effort to create an iso (and I'm not sure if I'd be content with just the internet)!
Please note that I just installed it yesterday and I need some time to become familiar with Linux, so 'the jury is still out'. I've already indicated that I really like the desktop's appearance and I've not come across any 'glitches' (so far), but it seems to me that Chalet is running somewhat slower than WinXP on my old Dell (Firefox takes noticeably longer to launch on Chalet than on WinXP)! The PC is a Dell Dimension with a 2.2 GHz Pentium 4 (x86), 1.5G RAM, 60G HDD -- WinXP (SP3) actually ran quite well on it.
The Passmark score on that processor is just over 200. I've looked, and have yet to find a distribution that runs truly satisfactorily on one that slow. Those based on Ubuntu -- including lubuntu, xubuntu, lxle, etc. -- are too heavy; those based on Puppy are too annoying (no offense to fans of those distros). So it's not surprising that ChaletOS seems pokey. Perhaps someone else has had better luck with a distribution for really old hardware?
Maybe Debian with the LXDE desktop? Latest Live (x86) ISOs are here: http://cdimage.debian.org/debian-cd/current-live/i386/iso-hybrid/ I think LXDE is the lightest DE of those offered.
Out of curiosity, what in particular do you find annoying about Puppy (I ask because I was thinking about tryintg it)
I missed seeing your post last week. Maybe LXLE is a better solution for me? - please post the specs of your "old hardware".
@fblais, please remember your talking to a Windows guy - does DE refer to LXDE? ....and why do you believe that a Debian-based version would be lighter than a Xubuntu-based version (ChaletOS)?
I'm a Windows guy too, but over the years have played around quite a bit with Linux. It's only been within the last few years that any Linux distribution -- and I'm particularly thinking about those based on Ubuntu, particularly Mint -- has come close to "just working" out of the box. So now, when you install lubuntu, xubuntu, or especially Mint, you can normally expect to be up and running pretty much right away. However, if you have very old hardware that won't quite run lubuntu, you'll inevitably be referred to Puppy. Now I'm just a Linux hobbyist and certainly not a Puppy expert. And Puppy, particularly the branch based on Ubuntu, is certainly easier to use than it used to be. But it still is far from the "it just works" usability that those other distros have developed over the last few years. It just reminds me of the hair-pulling difficulty of getting normal things to work that used to be the norm with all Linux distros -- at least for a Windows guy like me. When people ask me what they should do with old hardware I tell them to try lubuntu, and if that doesn't work to junk it and go buy a cheap box that will run lubuntu, xubuntu, or Mint. Life's too short... Anyhow, that's not very specific, I know, but since Puppy's not designed to be installed anyhow, you can easily put it on a CD and see for yourself.
You might be interested in a very good guide to Linux for Windows users, written by a frequent Wilders contributor: http://www.dedoimedo.com/computers/ultimate-linux-guide-for-windows-users.html#mozTocId355104
@sbwhiteman, thanks for your feedback. Before starting this thread I was under the impression that a good many Linux distros would boot and run quicker than WinXP on my old PC - looks like that was an erroneous assumption! I may just restore my WinXP backup image and continue to use it on that old hardware, running Shadow Defender for protection whenever I'm on the internet (which won't be very often). Most of the time I'm using my Win10 laptop.
Yeah I totally understand I would rather use Chrome OS it's got Android apps now for most Chromebooks.
The current Linux Distros are different from their 1990s predecessors, just as Windows 95 is different from its today's counterpart. Ubuntu's first release 4.10 (2004) was less than 600mb in size, latest version 16.10 is around 1.5 gb, with all that it implies in hardware requirements.