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| Thread ID: 32204 | 2003-04-12 04:44:00 | I have an old 386 computer. Suggestions on what can I do with it?? | PoWa (203) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 135173 | 2003-04-15 11:12:00 | paper weight?? small linux firewall / proxy?? |
robsonde (120) | ||
| 135174 | 2003-04-15 12:41:00 | If you want to try a Linux based firewall I recommend "Freesco". I have tired Smoothwall, GNatbox and a few of the LRP derivatives and finally settled on Freesco. It is Super simple to set up and you don't have to commit to blowing away a HD. as it boot from a 1.4Mb floppy.. Don't be put off by that ... it is a full featured router firewall which will support up to three NICs ie two protected networks that cant see each other (unless you explicitly say they can [not sure why you would do that]) with the third NIC for your ADSL modem. And you can use a modem to dial into you network to get access via the ADSL. (become an ISP... just don't charge for it!!) If you are using Dialup to ISP it will do all that to, and disconnect automatically. There is even a browser based administration to setup banned sites etc and check on who has been trying to get into you network etc. So you box doesn't need a screen. ( screen/keyboard needed to do the initial setup) The support on the Freesco forum is superb.. These guys (and a few girls) are super good at helping out even the absolute newbies. Real easy to put on a HD and it boots faster.. but what the heck.. mine has been running, booted off floppy, as of today, 106 days... A 386 with a NIC, a modem, a floppy and 8Mb ram is all you need to have a play with a linux box. Rgds...John S |
John S (3583) | ||
| 135175 | 2003-04-15 13:36:00 | >Web server, file server, firewall. thow win NT4 on it and do this the other thing you can do is SMASH IT go to a glass blower and get them to poor you a coffee table a coffee table with PC parts would look cool |
sc0ut (2899) | ||
| 135176 | 2003-04-18 12:52:00 | >the other thing you can do is SMASH IT go to a glass blower and get them to poor you a coffee table a coffee table with PC parts would look cool that just defies the laws of physics |
PoWa (203) | ||
| 135177 | 2003-04-18 13:16:00 | I've tried similar. Its really a bit slow for linux. If you could find another 8megs it would be usable, otherwise it will spend too much time thrashing the disk to keep up. Slackware 3.3 will install in 8 megs. The later 3.x & 4.0 won't, even with a swapfile (BTW early kernels give funny error messages when they run out of memory). Sticking the drive in another computer works since it isn't tied to the hardware too much, plus its much faster. |
bmason (508) | ||
| 135178 | 2003-04-18 13:32:00 | My god PoWa, that's what I had, until this week just gone! Yes I had Win 3.1, MS Works on it etc. Mind you I was only using it for typing my screenplays on, for 3 years! Have a secondhand Pentium 2 now, as I wanted to hook up to the net from home. People here have already told you how to get data off your hard drive. I got a comp. guy to come in and delete off my hard drive, but saved everything on a floppy, can't remember how he did it though, LOL! So yeah, been there done that. As for what to do with it, well I too have recieved humourous comments as well, even when I was using it! ( the word "dinosaur" was used on numerous occasions over the 3 yr period ) It's probably good as some sort of ornament round the house, as people have already suggested here, or some child might want it to play the games on if you choose to change your mind bout getting rid of the games on it, otherwise it's not really good for anything else once you have got a much better system to operate on. Just my five cents worth there. All the best PoWa. -Gregg Buchanan. |
Filmman (3584) | ||
| 135179 | 2003-04-18 14:35:00 | Thanks :) I just tried to install the smoothwall program, needed to make a boot disc to get it to run off the cd . But no troubles there . Anyway, it reckons I need to have a network card in it before it will continue to install . . . figures . . I'm gonna try that freesco programme out as well, that looks cool . Where can I get a new network card that runs in one of those old old old slots ummm what do they call them ISA or PCMCIA or something?? After I put one of those cards in where do I go from there . . . I have an ADSL router that has a 4port switch built into it (Dynalink RTA300) . Luckily there is one ethernet port free on that . Where does this firewall or proxy thing fit into the equation?? Do I plug a network cable from the 386 into the router . . . set up the firewall on the 386 and tell it to connect to the internet through the router . . . then tell the other computers to connect to the internet through the 386 (make it the gateway) ??? The other computers are running XP,2000, and 98se now . . . if I set up the gateway for the LAN on each computer to be the 386, wouldn't all network traffic slow down heaps??? cos the network card will be a max of 10Mbs ??? or is there someway to make network traffic go through the router (100Mbs) and all internet traffic to come via the 386 . Confused yet? Read my post again ;) |
PoWa (203) | ||
| 135180 | 2003-04-19 07:13:00 | Does this card look very good? DSE ISA Network Card (www.dse.co.nz) They are $28 Is that very good? or can I get a better deal elsewhere? |
PoWa (203) | ||
| 135181 | 2003-04-19 08:20:00 | Too slow for a gateway, even with linux. Been there done that. | Pheonix (280) | ||
| 135182 | 2003-04-19 10:51:00 | mp3 box??? add network card, have a hdd a harddrive of a few hundred mb, maybe a gig if you can get it to work and then transfer files over network... should work! - David |
DangerousDave (697) | ||
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