46
votes
Accepted
What is the oldest computer capable of running a modern version of GNU/Linux?
If you're looking to run a modern-ish version of Linux, the oldest hardware is likely a Intel 80386 from 1986, probably with some memory upgrades -- 640k isn't enough for everybody. Note that support ...
- 8,550
43
votes
Accepted
Does the first version of Linux developed by Linus Torvalds have a GUI?
Note, Linux is only a kernel, like msdos.sys in DOS or krnl386.exe in Windows.
No. It had no GUI, it was purely command line.
In Linus' initial statement, roughly with the release of the Linux ...
- 1,749
33
votes
Which Linux or BSD distributions do still support i386, i486 or i586 CPUs?
Slackware still claims to support 486s:
Below is a list of minimum system requirements needed to install and run Slackware.
486 processor
64MB RAM (1GB+ suggested)
About 5GB+ of hard disk space for ...
- 118k
33
votes
Accepted
When did the Linux kernel become libre software?
February 1992 it changed to GPL license.
Change to GPL is notified in 0.12 release, February 1992
First GPL release 0.99, December 1992
- 28.3k
30
votes
Which Linux or BSD distributions do still support i386, i486 or i586 CPUs?
I have had great success with Gentoo Linux on the earliest generation of Intel 80486 processors, though I had to patch it (below).
It works on the later ones too (486DX2 and 486DX4, both clock ...
- 531
30
votes
Accepted
What init system was used in early Linux distributions?
Early Linux distributions, including MCC and TAMU, used Miquel van Smoorenburg’s sysvinit package (which was originally written for Minix in February 1992 and ported to Linux in July 1992; it is now ...
- 118k
27
votes
Which Linux or BSD distributions do still support i386, i486 or i586 CPUs?
Linux still supports the 80486 SX: the SX was simply a DX without the FPU, and the FPU emulation code is still present (Processor type and features->Math emulation).
Finding a distro is a bit ...
- 8,550
26
votes
Accepted
Is there a seamless, Wine-like AmigaOS emulator for Linux, specifically for text-based programs?
A solution like that already exists: it's called vamos (Virtual AMiga OS) and emulates a 68k CPU and a bunch of libraries - enough to get terminal only programs (like compilers and assemblers) running:...
- 1,584
25
votes
Why did Linux standardise on RTS/CTS flow control for serial ports
In short, Linux is a Unix-like operating system kernel and does things like other Unix-like operating systems. The least common denominator for different Unix-like systems is the POSIX standard, which,...
- 28.3k
23
votes
What is the oldest computer capable of running a modern version of GNU/Linux?
The Intel 80486DX came out in 1989, and that can run Gentoo Linux. This is really nice because most Gentoo portage packages are very current. You can build a completely current Linux kernel for it too....
- 531
21
votes
Why is the serial port driver named "/dev/ttyS#"?
TL;DR: Until Unix v7, if you wanted to be able to use a serial port for terminal logins, it had to have a name starting with "/dev/tty".
At the time the first Unix systems were developed, it was ...
- 11.4k
20
votes
How did X talk to the video card before DRI/DRM?
Before we had graphics support in the Linux kernel, any program that wanted to enter graphics mode had to access the graphics card directly. Those programs were generally started with root privileges ...
- 7,636
19
votes
What is the oldest computer capable of running a modern version of GNU/Linux?
A certain freak has successfully run Ubuntu on a 8-bit microcontroller. From startup to the Ubuntu login window, it took him six hours.
In order to do that, he had to write something that emulates a ...
- 291
16
votes
Which Linux or BSD distributions do still support i386, i486 or i586 CPUs?
Modern Gentoo still works on the 486 in 2018!
You can see the details including the video of my attempt here: http://yeokhengmeng.com/2018/01/make-the-486-great-again/
Detailed instructions: https://...
- 161
15
votes
Accepted
Is it possible to run Linux on a GBA SP?
Not Linux, but I know you can run UNIX 5 with a tool called gbaunix. You can read about the process in Amit Singh's paper on kernelthread and you can browse through the source on my unofficial fork ...
- 9,432
15
votes
Accepted
Was Hurd kernel created as a modification of Linux kernel?
No. The Hurd was a separate effort, using a microkernel design. Some computer scientists believe this to have more appealing properties than the pragmatic monolithic design of the Linux kernel, but it ...
- 58.4k
15
votes
Accepted
Was there ever a Linux kernel driver for accessing disks via BIOS?
To my knowledge, no such driver has ever been written.
Since the very earliest versions, Linux has been a pure 32-bit protected-mode kernel that drove most devices (including disk controllers) ...
- 21.6k
14
votes
Accepted
Since when are Linux drivers loaded as kernel modules?
Kernel modules have been available since version 1.1.85 in January 1995 (see the introduction of README.modules in the 1.1.85 patch). At first, few drivers were actually available as modules, but ...
- 118k
14
votes
Accepted
Why is the serial port driver named "/dev/ttyS#"?
Historically a computer terminal or modem would be the most common device connected to a serial port. Thus, the default file name for the device reflects its most common usage, similarly to /dev/lpN ...
- 18.3k
14
votes
What is the oldest computer capable of running a modern version of GNU/Linux?
Would ELKS count as modern Linux? It can be run on even older hardware (original IBM PC).
- 672
14
votes
Which Linux or BSD distributions do still support i386, i486 or i586 CPUs?
OpenBSD supports 80486DX and higher. 80486SX is not supported because it lacks floating point.
- 11.4k
13
votes
Why did Linux standardise on RTS/CTS flow control for serial ports
Linux started as a hobbyist operating system. It was in no position to set any kind of standard. Instead, Linux implemented what hobbyists needed at that time. When Linux got popular, the convention ...
- 7,636
12
votes
Is there a Linux client for Amiga Explorer?
I don't know of any Linux-hosted software which is compatible with Amiga Explorer.
There are a number of other ways of transferring files to and from Amigas from Linux though. Over a null-modem cable,...
- 118k
12
votes
What is the oldest computer capable of running a modern version of GNU/Linux?
I have a 1991 Sun Ultra 1 from 1991 which can run the very latest Linux kernel (I do so under the Gentoo distribution). As old computers go, though, it is quite modern, with a 64-bit CPU, and I've ...
- 1,632
12
votes
Accepted
Is there a way to link object files for DOS from Linux?
It turns out that FASM can generate MZ 16-bit DOS executables directly:
format MZ
mov ah, 9h
mov dx, hello
int 21h
mov ax, 4c00h
int 21h
hello db 'Hello, world!', 13, 10, '$'
Which can be ...
- 2,584
12
votes
Accepted
What, if any, available older versions of Linux distributions does xroach gracefully run on?
I just uploaded a new version of xroach to sourceforge. This version works in Gnome KDE, but also in FVWM and the like:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/xroachng/
for the bleeding edge visit:
https://...
- 136
12
votes
Accepted
What 386-specific features did Linux use?
One of Linus’ other posts provides the answer:
PS. Yes - it's free of any minix code, and it has a multi-threaded fs. It is NOT protable (uses 386 task switching etc), and it probably never will ...
- 118k
12
votes
Can Linux boot beyond 1023 cylinders on old BIOS?
As the large disk howto explains, LILO bootstraps through a loader that still uses the BIOS, this is why LILO didn't work for you.
On the other hand, nuni does not use BIOS services but accesses IDE ...
- 26.1k
11
votes
Is it possible to run Linux on a GBA SP?
Linux itself will not run on the GBA SP. The reason for this is that the CPUs (one ARM7TDMI and one Z80) do not have a way to protect and manage memory. The component to do that is the MMU, which ...
- 38.2k
11
votes
Connecting a Vintage Monochrome Monitor to a Modern PC
Does anyone know hard or time consuming it would be to achieve this?
Assuming you have a modern PC with VGA out, or you can put in a graphics card with VGA out, it's not hard at all, if you know a ...
- 26.1k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible