Reading a old post (2011 https://www.hwupgrade.it/forum/showthread.php?t=2353055 ) the solutios is one of this distro

SliTaz
ZenWalk
antiX
Puppy Linux
Macpup
VectorLinux

Obviously not the latest version.
But you have to test them

Pentium IIIs can run any 32-bit modern distro...😉
the 32-bit version Linux Mint Debian Edition 4 It's a full featured distro so you wont have to install anything apart from updates initially. Was you have got the hang of it you can add othe programs...😉 It will run on 512meg if ram but is advisable to get more installed at some point.

https://linuxmint.com/release.php?id=37

The 32-bit version of BunsenLibs Lithium is a smaller install but you have access to a wide variety of Debian 32-bit applications that LMDE 4 has access to.

https://www.bunsenlabs.org/installation.html

I am currently run Devuan Jessie on my current project, a AMD K6-2 400 witch 256megs of ram and that boots up to the desktop in 1.5 It just when to archive statis round the middle of the year. Devuans' current 32-bit distro is BeoWolf an it should run fine on your system as well...😉 It is also sysvini based and not systemd based.

https://www.devuan.org/

dataino.it wrote on 2021-07-07, 22:23:

Reading a old post (2011 https://www.hwupgrade.it/forum/showthread.php?t=2353055 ) the solutios is one of this distro […]
Show full quote

Reading a old post (2011 https://www.hwupgrade.it/forum/showthread.php?t=2353055 ) the solutios is one of this distro

SliTaz
ZenWalk
antiX
Puppy Linux
Macpup
VectorLinux

Obviously not the latest version.
But you have to test them

Thanks I'll take a look at this list 😀

Caluser2000 wrote on 2021-07-07, 22:51:

Pentium IIIs can run any 32-bit modern distro...;) the 32-bit version Linux Mint Debian Edition 4 It's a full featured distro so […]
Show full quote

Pentium IIIs can run any 32-bit modern distro...😉
the 32-bit version Linux Mint Debian Edition 4 It's a full featured distro so you wont have to install anything apart from updates initially. Was you have got the hang of it you can add othe programs...😉 It will run on 512meg if ram but is advisable to get more installed at some point.

https://linuxmint.com/release.php?id=37

The 32-bit version of BunsenLibs Lithium is a smaller install but you have access to a wide variety of Debian 32-bit applications that LMDE 4 has access to.

https://www.bunsenlabs.org/installation.html

I am currently run Devuan Jessie on my current project, a AMD K6-2 400 witch 256megs of ram and that boots up to the desktop in 1.5 It just when to archive statis round the middle of the year. Devuans' current 32-bit distro is BeoWolf an it should run fine on your system as well...😉 It is also sysvini based and not systemd based.

https://www.devuan.org/

Thanks a lot for this info, I'll try some of these distros and get back to you. I also have a AMD K6-2 500AF with 328MB of RAM that could work great if it runs on a lesser processor and less RAM in your case

Th

GasparB123 wrote on 2021-07-08, 00:01:

Caluser2000 wrote on 2021-07-07, 22:51:

Pentium IIIs can run any 32-bit modern distro...;) the 32-bit version Linux Mint Debian Edition 4 It's a full featured distro so […]
Show full quote

Pentium IIIs can run any 32-bit modern distro...😉
the 32-bit version Linux Mint Debian Edition 4 It's a full featured distro so you wont have to install anything apart from updates initially. Was you have got the hang of it you can add othe programs...😉 It will run on 512meg if ram but is advisable to get more installed at some point.

https://linuxmint.com/release.php?id=37

The 32-bit version of BunsenLibs Lithium is a smaller install but you have access to a wide variety of Debian 32-bit applications that LMDE 4 has access to.

https://www.bunsenlabs.org/installation.html

I am currently run Devuan Jessie on my current project, a AMD K6-2 400 witch 256megs of ram and that boots up to the desktop in 1.5 It just when to archive statis round the middle of the year. Devuans' current 32-bit distro is BeoWolf an it should run fine on your system as well...😉 It is also sysvini based and not systemd based.

https://www.devuan.org/

Thanks a lot for this info, I'll try some of these distros and get back to you. I also have a AMD K6-2 500AF with 328MB of RAM that could work great if it runs on a lesser processor and less RAM in your case

You are most welcome...😉 The forums in all those distros I mentioned are fantastic rtw to helping help and would be far far knowledgeable than I would. Im fixed on Debian based Distros these days. Red Hat is far more enterprise focused imho

Remember it's all about the source Luke....😉

I'm going to throw open Suse into the mix. I've been using Suse since 7.3 it's a fantastic distribution easy to setup and use and crazy stable.

chrismeyer6 wrote on 2021-07-08, 03:07:

I'm going to throw open Suse into the mix. I've been using Suse since 7.3 it's a fantastic distribution easy to setup and use and crazy stable.

SuSE 7.2 still had 486DX support when most distros were or had dropped 486DX support. SuSE had fantastic support documentation back then....😀

Yes it did I still have all my Suse boxes,books, and CDs/DVDs safely stored away. Even though they don't have proper books Suse still has great documentation so I've printed it all out and have it neatly sorted in three ring binders for easy reference and reading.

chrismeyer6 wrote on 2021-07-08, 03:07:

I'm going to throw open Suse into the mix. I've been using Suse since 7.3 it's a fantastic distribution easy to setup and use and crazy stable.

Would the newest version still support a Pentium III?? Or would I have to look back to an earlier version??

It should be fine but it could be a little slow. How much ram are you going to put into the system and what speed P3 are you going to run?

32bit linux is cool but its important to remember that the multimedia extensions of pentium III are way behind even pentium 4's so not all apps will work and forget HD video acceleration unless there are solutions that engage the mid to high range AGP / PCIE gpu than the cpu doing the work.
When i run windows xp on my pentium III's many apps will install but hang without for example MMX v2 or SSE V2 it would be cool if there was a pure pentium III software catalog to look up in general as well as earlier and later cpu's for app / game compatibility. These extensions are mainly used for web advertisements and spyware and little used in comparison for real work or play. Thus I think these extensions are abused mostly and mostly a gimmick to steer away their core performace critics.
XP is like a windows 2000 MKII but with support for later cpu extensions that pentium 3 cannot run.
Thus for guaranteed 100% support everything windows 2000 and windows 2000 itself would be the best windows version for pentium III.
Those unofficial kernel extensions only good for pentium 4 class instructions. (probably why i only see them for xp and above)
Looking into my imagination I am thinking MMX SSE V2, 3, 4 etc plugin to translate more modern instrucions for the pentium III or below core to utilise but slower? then it be a multi cpu recommended feature ...

Upgrade to 1 gig or more of RAM and use Debian XFCE. Also upgrade the graphics if possible.

chrismeyer6 wrote on 2021-07-08, 21:24:

It should be fine but it could be a little slow. How much ram are you going to put into the system and what speed P3 are you going to run?

It's a 933Mhz Pentium III, and I'm trying to find 1GB of PC133 RAM (2x512), but for the moment it runs 512MB (2x256).

keenmaster486 wrote on 2021-07-08, 22:15:

Upgrade to 1 gig or more of RAM and use Debian XFCE. Also upgrade the graphics if possible.

The thing is PC133 doesn't go higher than 1GB I believe, and 512MB sticks are very hard to find by. Even if a find two of them, I hope the motherboard supports it. And it's even harder to find PCI graphics cards.

zapbuzz wrote on 2021-07-08, 21:28:

32bit linux is cool but its important to remember that the multimedia extensions of pentium III are way behind even pentium 4's […]
Show full quote

32bit linux is cool but its important to remember that the multimedia extensions of pentium III are way behind even pentium 4's so not all apps will work and forget HD video acceleration unless there are solutions that engage the mid to high range AGP / PCIE gpu than the cpu doing the work.
When i run windows xp on my pentium III's many apps will install but hang without for example MMX v2 or SSE V2 it would be cool if there was a pure pentium III software catalog to look up in general as well as earlier and later cpu's for app / game compatibility. These extensions are mainly used for web advertisements and spyware and little used in comparison for real work or play. Thus I think these extensions are abused mostly and mostly a gimmick to steer away their core performace critics.
XP is like a windows 2000 MKII but with support for later cpu extensions that pentium 3 cannot run.
Thus for guaranteed 100% support everything windows 2000 and windows 2000 itself would be the best windows version for pentium III.
Those unofficial kernel extensions only good for pentium 4 class instructions. (probably why i only see them for xp and above)
Looking into my imagination I am thinking MMX SSE V2, 3, 4 etc plugin to translate more modern instrucions for the pentium III or below core to utilise but slower? then it be a multi cpu recommended feature ...

All I'm looking for is basic web browsing and Office like programs. Many kids and families have smartphones with which to watch videos, and assist to virtual classes. The objective is to give them a dirt cheap computer so they can type their homework on a keyboard, or see information on a bigger screen rather than something as small as a smartphone. And I think these type of computers can deliver on that.

What motherboard and chipset does it have?

GasparB123 wrote on 2021-07-08, 22:30:

zapbuzz wrote on 2021-07-08, 21:28:

32bit linux is cool but its important to remember that the multimedia extensions of pentium III are way behind even pentium 4's […]
Show full quote

32bit linux is cool but its important to remember that the multimedia extensions of pentium III are way behind even pentium 4's so not all apps will work and forget HD video acceleration unless there are solutions that engage the mid to high range AGP / PCIE gpu than the cpu doing the work.
When i run windows xp on my pentium III's many apps will install but hang without for example MMX v2 or SSE V2 it would be cool if there was a pure pentium III software catalog to look up in general as well as earlier and later cpu's for app / game compatibility. These extensions are mainly used for web advertisements and spyware and little used in comparison for real work or play. Thus I think these extensions are abused mostly and mostly a gimmick to steer away their core performace critics.
XP is like a windows 2000 MKII but with support for later cpu extensions that pentium 3 cannot run.
Thus for guaranteed 100% support everything windows 2000 and windows 2000 itself would be the best windows version for pentium III.
Those unofficial kernel extensions only good for pentium 4 class instructions. (probably why i only see them for xp and above)
Looking into my imagination I am thinking MMX SSE V2, 3, 4 etc plugin to translate more modern instrucions for the pentium III or below core to utilise but slower? then it be a multi cpu recommended feature ...

All I'm looking for is basic web browsing and Office like programs. Many kids and families have smartphones with which to watch videos, and assist to virtual classes. The objective is to give them a dirt cheap computer so they can type their homework on a keyboard, or see information on a bigger screen rather than something as small as a smartphone. And I think these type of computers can deliver on that.

Open Office is great for homework and projects comes in almost alll generations of pc's web browsers struggle with video and scripts because pentium III era and few newer didn't have very fancy extensions and gpu's and relied on the cpu more thus low res videos would need to be selected.

GasparB123 wrote on 2021-07-08, 22:30:

zapbuzz wrote on 2021-07-08, 21:28:

32bit linux is cool but its important to remember that the multimedia extensions of pentium III are way behind even pentium 4's […]
Show full quote

32bit linux is cool but its important to remember that the multimedia extensions of pentium III are way behind even pentium 4's so not all apps will work and forget HD video acceleration unless there are solutions that engage the mid to high range AGP / PCIE gpu than the cpu doing the work.
When i run windows xp on my pentium III's many apps will install but hang without for example MMX v2 or SSE V2 it would be cool if there was a pure pentium III software catalog to look up in general as well as earlier and later cpu's for app / game compatibility. These extensions are mainly used for web advertisements and spyware and little used in comparison for real work or play. Thus I think these extensions are abused mostly and mostly a gimmick to steer away their core performace critics.
XP is like a windows 2000 MKII but with support for later cpu extensions that pentium 3 cannot run.
Thus for guaranteed 100% support everything windows 2000 and windows 2000 itself would be the best windows version for pentium III.
Those unofficial kernel extensions only good for pentium 4 class instructions. (probably why i only see them for xp and above)
Looking into my imagination I am thinking MMX SSE V2, 3, 4 etc plugin to translate more modern instrucions for the pentium III or below core to utilise but slower? then it be a multi cpu recommended feature ...

All I'm looking for is basic web browsing and Office like programs. Many kids and families have smartphones with which to watch videos, and assist to virtual classes. The objective is to give them a dirt cheap computer so they can type their homework on a keyboard, or see information on a bigger screen rather than something as small as a smartphone. And I think these type of computers can deliver on that.

If I can do I that on an AMD K6-2 400 system with 256megs of ram using a recently archived Linux version you definitely can on on a modern 32-bit Linux distro on your P3 933 plus system...😉

I am making this post and attaching below from my AMD K2-6 system now...😉