Update: The laptop arrived and it knows both that it is a Compaq and that it currently is running Windows 98. I’ll spend a bit of time documenting the hardware configuration and obtaining drivers before starting the conversion to Linux.
To reiterate, I bought an ancient laptop from Bob Johnson.com – a Compaq Presario 1235 laptop – for $199. It’s old and slow, but I ran servers on a 486DX2/66 in 1999-2000 so I don’t think it will be a problem. The tricky part will be getting a network card to work.
I found a site with instructions on installing Red Hat and getting drivers for this model laptop. I may have an old 5.2 install CD around somewhere. I also have 8.something, but that’s 5 CDs and cutting it kind of close for a laptop that only has a 4G hard drive.
Anyway, here are the details:
Compaq Presario 1235
AMD K6 – a blistering 266Mhz Processor. 12 inch Dual Scan display. Whopping 4 Gig hard drive. 96 meg of memory. 24x CDROM. Floppy. PCMCIA Slot. Built in sound and speakers. TrackPad – good I can’t stand those little clit mice. Parallel, Serial, and USB ports. Ultra-fast 56k Modem. Includes the AC adapter and an unwarranted battery. Featherweight 7 lbs. Windows 98
Warranty: Lifetime Limited Warranty
Compaq brings you the future of Internet notebook PC technology for an unbeatable value with the Presario 1235 Internet PC. Everything is built right into its easy-to-use, intuitive design – including a fast AMD-K6 MMX Enhanced Processor, 24X CD-ROM drive.
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