![\"Asus](\"http:\/\/www.blogcdn.com\/www.engadget.com\/media\/2008\/08\/8-2-08-eee-pc-900a.jpg\")
Asus Eee PC 900A<\/p><\/div>\n
Admittedly, it was underwhelming. \u00a0Powered by a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270, 1 GB RAM and a meager 4 GB SSD, it was plain from the beginning that this machine wasn’t going to replace even a bulky laptop in the long run.<\/p>\n
It ran a custom version of Ubuntu Linux called Eeebuntu<\/a>. \u00a0At the time, it was a serviceable OS on a miniaturized laptop. \u00a0The keys were tiny (even for someone whose fingers aren’t that large to begin with), but everything worked.<\/p>\n Then the death knell began to toll. \u00a0The first sign of the end was that Eeebuntu was discontinued. Well, there was an attempt to evolve it into something called Aurora OS<\/a>, but to my knowledge, a finished product (even an alpha or beta) never saw the light of day.<\/p>\n As tablets came into prominence, I relegated the Eee PC to storage.<\/p>\n About eight months ago I came across this little machine while I was renovating my home office. \u00a0After doing some research on DistroWatch<\/a> and other sites, \u00a0and having a plethora of USB sticks, I decided to use the thing as a ‘sandbox’ to try out light, nimble Linux OSes.<\/p>\n By this time, even most Linux distros had become large (bloated, some might say?) and would not install on the meager 4 GB internal drive. \u00a0Fortunately, I came across Puppy Linux<\/a>. \u00a0It was perfect! \u00a0It installed entirely on the internal SSD (Asus included 3 USB ports and a SDHC card reader for additional storage). \u00a0It was loaded with utilities, links, and features. \u00a0However, it was not without bugs: \u00a0many windows would not size to the somewhat abnormal screen dimensions (1024 x 600), and while useful, some of the programs and utilities were just downright ugly! \u00a0Help was also confusing. \u00a0So, while I used Puppy for a while, I always felt there must be something “better.”<\/p>\n I let things rest to let life get in the way, and just recently returned to this “project.” \u00a0Once again, I searched and researched. \u00a0I downloaded numerous 32-bit lightweight Linux distros, such as Lubuntu<\/a>, Bodhi<\/a>, LXLE<\/a>, Mageia<\/a>. Manjaro<\/a> and Peppermint OS<\/a>. \u00a0None of them quite fit\u2014they either didn’t load, or the interface just wasn’t to my liking. Finally, I came across Simplicity Linux<\/a>, which is a Puppy derivative. \u00a0What makes Simplicity Linux appealing to me is that<\/p>\n The version I’ve been using is a beta: \u00a015.7. \u00a0As such, there are still some rough edges and bugs. \u00a0But it too, installs on the internal SSD, loads into RAM (for faster execution), and may just keep my Eee PC alive for a while longer!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It must have been nearly six years ago that the “netbook” craze came into vogue. \u00a0This was before the iPad and tablet computing. \u00a0As one who travels frequently, I bought into the craze, looking for something lightweight but powerful enough … Continue reading \n