How Much Computer Do You Need?

Over on Motho ke motho ka botho a question has been asked that has lurked around my mind for some time. Although the question is directed at Ubuntu users, I think it applies to people in general with their computers. Not everyone, mind you, but the true computer fans. What was asked in a forum thread and repeated on a blog involved "why so many Ubuntu users seem to use machines far beyond what is technically required." It's a good question.

In 1994 my oldest brother (who sells and services computers) and my mother arranged to get me a desktop. It was my first computer. It ran Windows 3.1 and had no Internet connection, but at the time 3.1 was current and no one I knew had an Internet connection (besides, probably, the afformentioned brother). I took that computer with me to three different colleges, and when I finally graduated with a B.Min. from Harding in 1999 (got an A.A. from MACC in 1997) I still had that same connection. By that point I had been online with it for a few years through a dial-up connection (what pretty much everyone used then) and had done countless homework assignments, reports and sermons with it. It served me well, but by 1999 some friends were already poking fun at my old, slow computer. I didn't mind much. It did what I needed. However, I did notice that I seemed to be missing more and more online. Some elements weren't loading properly on pages and more and more updates were not compatible with the OS I was using.

It's probably in my nature to be conservative and utilitarian. I never have been and am sure I never will be an early adopter of any technology. I don't like spending money on things I don't really need, especially when what I have serves my purposes. Clearly, not everyone feels this way. So many iPhones were sold in the first weeks it was available because of a crush of early adopters attracted by the bling, elegance and sophistication of that game-changing device. Still, it's now 2009 and I don't own an iPhone or anything like it. Why spend the money?

Although Linux is becoming more popular, especially through user-friendly distros like Ubuntu, it should be admitted that Linux is still primarily a geek OS. Computer geeks tend to like new, fast, top-of-the-line computers (although, of course, there is a niche that's into retro or heirloom computers). Considering further how the *buntu distros tend to strive to be as lightweight as possible for greater speed and agility, it shouldn't be surprising that the hardware running Ubuntu would exceed requirements. Given all that, it makes sense to me that many Ubuntu users would essentially have more computer than they need.

There are people switching to low-powered netbooks, and I've heard that some return in in disgust when they discover they can't do everything with it they can do on a regular notebook or desktop. Still, the market for netbooks seems to be expanding, so someone finds them useful. Most people really only use their home computers for web surfing, e-mail and possibly homework. You don't need much computer for that.

Sometimes I wish I had that old computer from college again (but not as my only computer!). When I graduated I returned it to my older brother. I couldn't really justify taking it with me to Brazil, and he mentioned it wasn't worth much, even for parts. Whatever minimal amount it had for RAM and hard disk space, I could put Damn Small Linux (DSL) or perhaps even Xubuntu on it and probably get more years of life and use out of it, not missing much of anything. It'd certainly be a nice desktop for my kids to play around on.

If you have a computer in the closet or even on your desk at home that is old, clunky and seems ready to throw out, think twice. Check out DSL and/or Xubuntu to replace that unstable and probably virus-laden Windows OS, or give it away to a Linux user who knows what to do with it. Someone could surely benefit from it, and find that it was perhaps just the right amount of computer.

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See Also:
5 Reasons Old Computers Love Linux (Rannsaich mo Inntinn)
Netbooks, Older Technology and the Cloud (Igneous Quill)

Recommended Lightweight Distros for Older Computers:
Damn Small Linux - Minimum 16MB RAM, full run with 128MB. Whatever you have for a hard disk will be fine. This distro is for the truly aged and decrepit computer, but you'll be amazed at what you can make that old hardware do.

DSL-N - I haven't tried this one out myself, but the website says: "To have a pleasant experience, we recommend at least 64MBs and 300MHz." Since I don't know much about it, I suggest you only use this one if neither DSL or Xubuntu serve your interests.

Xubuntu - Minimum 128 MB RAM to install (256 MB RAM would be ideal) and 1.5 GB of hard disk space will need to be available for it. If your computer can handle this, Xubuntu will be a very nice choice. Click here to check out what a guest blogger had to say about it.