[DESKTOP] Any chance this ancient box could run Eoan?

[DoYouKubuntu]

I have a ≈13 year old Compaq I've mentioned; it's running 9.10 (yeah, really!). Having just brought my daily driver (System76 laptop) into the current release world, I'm wondering if there's any chance the old Compaq could run 19.10.

As I understand it, it's less of a resource hog than its predecessors, which would be good.

Offhand, I don't have a clue about the Compaq's specs, but could get them if needed. Basically, just think in terms of what was standard ≈13 years ago, and that's it!

It has both wired and wireless network connections, and works fine with a wireless Trackman trackball, and a USB-connected HP Deskjet all-in-one.

What do you think? I don't know that I could find my old 9.10 disc if installing 19.10 failed miserably. I've been planning on not replacing my two remaining desktops when they die, so this could conceivably be its death knell... (I'm sure old versions are still available online, right?)

[GreyGeek]

I suspect that 19.10 (or even better 20.04) will run as good or better than 9.10.

[Don B. Cilly]

Hmm. On the Kubuntu page, I can find a 32-bit version for 18.04, but not for 19.04 or 19.10... :·/

[kubicle]

Hmm. On the Kubuntu page, I can find a 32-bit version for 18.04, but not for 19.04 or 19.10... :·/

The 32 bit install images were dropped after 18.04 (if one needs 32 bit) https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2018/05/...staller-images

You can still install 18.04 (which is an LTS release with 3 years support), and optionally still upgrade it to newer releases 18.04>18.10>19.04 etc, but I don't know how long the 32-bit support will last (I don't follow kubuntu development as closely as I used to since I've moved to Neon), so it might be better to stick with 18.04 LTS (as you'll know it will be good for at least 21.04).

[DoYouKubuntu]

Oh, shoot, yeah you're all right, I didn't even think about it, but it's undoubtedly 32-bit.

My real objective is to bring my networking into this millennium. It's a long story, which I probably explained years ago, as to why I use Samba although there are no window$ in this house, so I'll skip that unless anyone's interested. But right now, despite my best efforts, including reading how-to guides on setting up Samba--which I've NEVER needed to resort to before--I just can't get things working properly since putting 19.10 on this laptop.

Yes, I did get it to mount the Compaq, so that part is fine, but not vice versa. None of my devices is able to connect to the laptop, even though when they scan, some of them see it, they even see its share name and IP address. But that's as far as it goes. The Compaq flat out refuses to mount it, and I haven't altered its fstab or any other networking settings in years. I did, however, attempt mounting it manually, using the variation of mount I was pointed to in another thread, but that failed, too.

My Android devices see it, some apps prompt for credentials, but nothing works--they all fail one way or another. You may recall that just days ago, I posted that one of my apps not only saw it, but connected to it, full read/write access, without requiring any credentials. Well, that stopped. (Because of my tinkering.)

Worst case scenario if I try installing the latest 32-bit version on the Compaq is that it becomes unusable, like horribly slow. In that case, I think I'd just kiss it goodbye. It's been solid as a rock, but I can't even remember the last time I actually sat down at its desk to use it; all I do is access files over the network. So, after backing them up, there's no great loss.