Because it is the most popular web browser (But you can use dillo or elinks if you are so inclined. )

Glad you solved 2 problems. Try and see if this installs and works well for you:
https://packages.debian.org/wheezy/enigma

Linux Distros to try on older PC:
I prefer distro that fits on CD mostly
Linux Lite - DVD = Will try one DVD size distro for variety
990 Mb, a bit bigger than a CD but not too big
LXLE - DVD - doesnt't support i386
Slitaz -Too Small
LUbuntu - DVD
Crunch bang - DVD also last version in 2013
Antix - Seems Good
4MLinux - Seems Good
Vector Linux Lite - Seems ok to try also but I am not a fan of slackaware
http://vectorlinux.osuosl.org/veclinux-7.2/iso-release/
Puppy Linux - Already Using it, need a variety
Linux BBQ - another good choice to try

Gentoo
Arch
LFS


BSD Variants - Will reserve for future
FreeDos - Not good for browsing etc., lack of security

1. One of my contacts suggested getting an IDE to SATA USB adapter
if dealing with older PCs. Not sure why this is good but will
look into it later.

2. When one finds some name brand PCs on the street, checks their
specifications on line and then opens them, they may seem better
inside, the reason for this is as the previous owner might have
upgraded them. Don't be careless with such a PC until this is
verified.

3. At this rate with time, there will be enough material on this
thread to write a book about older PCs.

4. The bios of my P4 server is not detecting my hard drive.
Prim Master is the DVD - RW
Second Master, Prim, sec. slave - all say none detected.

However, under hard drive info. it does list a drive. Perhaps I have
set both HD and DVD to Primary Master and hence the conflict ?
No wonder my PC is not booting from HD.
Came across this:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/26...-detected-bios

Used the gray cable for the HD but still didn't help.
Also, there are no jumpers on this HD to set it as primary or
slave etc.,

So read this link below, that gives more info. in regards to
the HD connections connections:
http://www.mikeshardware.com/howtos/...ct_ide_hd.html
and read the below also:
http://www.easeus.com/resource/insta...hard-drive.htm

A contact gave me the HD manual as:
https://eshop.macsales.com/Tech/manu...,d.ZGg&cad=rja

If set as "single" it means the hard drive expects to be the only drive on that controller... in other words, if you have another device on the same controller (like a CD/DVD) then the drive is not expecting it to be there and you'll get unpredictable results.

Was also advised to collect jumpers, batteries, CPU fans and any other accessories from dead mobos till I had enough. This was a good learning lesson for today.

5. When dumpster diving around apartment complexes with a lot of
seniors only, one can find old clothes etc., but rarely used IT
stuff. Where there are very young families, one can expect
to find more toys of children. So perhaps in an area where more
students live, more IT stuff can be expected.

6. I was advised by a contact that it is easy to carry, gift and
recycle the smaller devices. So folks choose this route. Upgrade
options are also offered for cell phones etc., where the older
one can be exchanged for a rebate. So they are rarely discarded in
the recycling bin. Also, even if tossed in a dumpster these devices
are hard to find as they are small and can be hard to find.

7. The Mobo of my P4 server is: S845WD1-E

Tech Specs:
https://www.cnet.com/products/intel-...-series/specs/
Found the manual for it at:
http://www.bbpos.com/…el-server-boar...1-e-manual.pdf
That was some junk above and not really the manual.
There are web redirection sites that host a page like manual and share junk later. Need to watch for this. Need to look for the manual better.

etomic.org had a pdf manual for S875WP1 , this was downloaded.
Hope this is close to my mobo
Vital web site to make note of above and google search for manual at that site if ever needed first.

Someone gave me a good link for DL page for the
mobo manual and drivers:
https://downloadcenter.intel.com/pro...oard-S845WD1-E

The PC speaker is not connected, need to find where it is connected.
The DVD drive is connected to one IDE connector on mobo
There are 2 blue separate IDE connectors for 2 HDS. Appears the mobo is not recognizing these IDE connections. Only one HD present. Verified that both IDE controllers are enabled in BIOS. All the IDE cables have dust on them, need to remove them all clean them well, this is for the future.

8. Need to put all parts of the old PC puzzle together and cover all special areas also. Must go from thumb sucker to a pro in regards to older PCs and supporting others with them in a few months. Anything in regards to older PCs, including supporting others use them
must become second nature after that time. This will be a good goal to achieve. However, this is more of a hobby interest. The world is not looking for a 286 or 386 expert for example, this is a good perspective to keep in mind. So, if one is slow in achieving this goal, it is ok also.

9. Create a DVD, set of CDs with all the media and software that is needed for such old PCs. That way, even if one is forced to go off line, one can still use their old PC even if in a limited manner.

10. Nov. 9th Wed. 2016 Today I found the PSU for a closed circuit security system and a super cooling system for a CPU both seemed non functional, not useful and I didn't bother to get. Today is the rare day that I didn't even find a useful cable in recycling. Wonder if folks are cooling off on cleaning up before the hols. Next few days will tell if this is a trend. Found and donated two pairs of men's shoes. Sometimes, it will be really slow in regards to IT parts in the recycling bins, this is ok and must be accepted.

11. At this point, I wish more for PC parts and accessories rather than full working PCs. Laptops, tablets, cell phones etc., are still an exception.

12. Unplug the power cable from the internal Hard Drive, use it only when it is really needed. For the most part, most routine things on an older PC can be done via USB booting from an 8G or even 4G
USB flash drive. This will increase the lifespan of the HD inside and it will be used only for the more vital purposes.

never mind

re: I do not interpret the world. Processing it, my compiler throws warnings, but I run faster.

Updates
Got Manual for Mobo Finally
https://www.manualowl.com/m/Intel/S8...ownload/275204 - Got the manual from here, Had to use opera browser and go thru picture Captcha a few times. But glad it worked.

Was told that there is a small black cylinder with white dot on its top towards the corner of the Mobo and this is the PC speaker. The speaker was just part of the case because the case manufacturers do not know if the motherboard that will be going in to the case has a speaker or not. Got the link from google images for the mobo that had a pic of the manual page. So followed that one.

Shocking experience.
Tried different jumper settings on my main P4 server HD to see if it will be recognized by Bios, all failed, then when trying to boot HD will make grinding noise and stopped booting. Disconnected HD and boot started from DVD. But no Linux Personal Config. on DVD, so tried USB boot with previously saved personal Config. and it worked well. Tried to put hd on sec. ID controller
and disconnected DVD drive, grinding noise still existed.
It didn't work without the DVD drive, said device aa03 something couldn't be found.
So then deleted the raid, put the HD back in raid controller, said Boot failure, no grinding noise.
Then attached DVD and it booted well, HD is ok also.

Was suggested to install Grub and see if it helped with booting from HD directly. This was done but
didn't help, so continue to use Live CD to boot.

Then this PC totally stopped booting. Based on advise, deleted the hardware raid, then installed HD IDE cable
from the blue raid controller into the White secondary controller. Replugged the DVD ide cable on the mobo.
Grub was installed on this HD. This worked for sometime and PC now is even booting directly from HD via grub.
However, the DVD drive is working inconsistently, poorly has to be opened up and cleaned.
Came across this video that explains how to do this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKbUOGTlDU8
Saw the below site also:
http://www.howtocleanstuff.net/how-t...our-dvd-drive/

Light Case P4 street found PC
The light Case P4 street found PC was tried again today and after a while, even the VGA output stopped.
Examining its Mobo revealed 6 bad capacitors, at this rate more can be expected to go bad. So removed it fully
and got what I can from it. Removed the processor etc., the top part of paper with the golden lines remained
stuck to the heat sink and came away from the Processor. Lots of solidified dirt on the heat sink,
guess this also lead to its demise. Replaced this mobo with the P3 mobo I got from Net Vista SFF, this works well.
It has only 1Mb of video ram tho, so works only in 1024 resolution. For just text and sound, this is more than
enough tho. Partitioned the HD and installed Linux on it.

Found a PC case today, it is a see thru type. Most of the screws etc., on it are gone but will see if it can be used
for something.

I usually prefer to go to the board manufactures site rather than some ofter manual collection/malware installer site.

https://downloadcenter.intel.com/pro...oard-S845WD1-E

Thanks, checked that site already, no manual there, so started
looking at other options.

I have a home built C2D PC that is not working as it needs a Video card and has no onboard video. Am thinking of removing that mobo and adding this one instead: Asrock Wolfdale1333-D667 - found this on a street PC. Got the manual for this at:
http://www.asrock.com/MB/Intel/Wolfd...asp?cat=Manual

Hopefully, this and the DVD drive open and clean will be my last 2 major HARDWARE projects for now. Will take my time to do these and see how it goes. I have few other minor projects like hard to open screws etc., but no rush for these. After these two, it will just be Major older PC software projects for me for a while.

Had to remove 2 PCI cards on the Light street found PC. This has created 2 gaps as I don't have the covers for these slots on the chasis. Last week, I found several of these, just took the screws and dumped the slot covers but in just a week I am needing few of these now, will be more careful in future. These are not that hard to store, are smaller and one never knows when they will be needed.

Better to store jumpers from mobos and optical drives also, never know when they will be needed.

Exact sized flathead screw driver was needed to remove the heatsink, one or two sizes smaller will not work. So, it helps to have a good collection of tools for this effort.

its the first link under archived documents.
https://downloadcenter.intel.com/dow...?product=50387

I have been unable to find manual for IBM Netvista SFF Motherboard so far. It is a P3 PC.

IBM's site you search by the machine type/model. Its the 1234-a2b number (4-3). If you don't have the machine and just the system board search by the FRU number on it.

Good to know, tx for sharing. There are no numbers on this board, I googled and found something as close to it as possible but still no manual for it.

It is getting colder outside, all stuff in recyclers are going getting to be a lot lesser. So, I will slow down my efforts with time. Have done a lot in regards to older PCs so far and taking a mini break from these projects will help me be more efficient. Some folks have cautioned me about going around in circles and this has been a good suggestion. I am going to try to learn progressively, efficiently and also try to put to practical use all that I am learning.

Date 13th Nov. 2016 Sunday
Few Misc. Points
1. Optical drive cleaning
I washed the red eye in the DVD-RW with hydrogen peroxide, didn't help.
Glad I could do this without having to open the DVD drive fully.
It is still not reading. Will try with vinegar and then finally with alcohol.
I have vinegar, don't have rubbing alcohol, can buy it easily and try.
So this is a learning process for me, it is good.
Now, I see rather than assuming, it is best to try out every new part
I find and ensure that it works.
If it truly is broken, then will be glad to throw it away just have to verify fully.

2. Very nice basic linux command below, comes in handy:
# find / -name *.default

3. How to find and backup the Thunderbird Profile:
http://www-archive.mozilla.org/suppo...erbird/profile
http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Thunderbird

4. Bonus for this thread Repairing a Toaster Oven:
http://thingsyoucanrepair.blogspot.c...repair_13.html

5. Re-Discovering The 'Lost Civilization' of Dial-Up BBS's
http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/...f-dial-up-bbss
http://spectrum.ieee.org/computing/n...n-board-system

This article made me reflect, I did enjoy the days of BBSes. However, don't wish to return to BBSes. My main objective
with older PCs is to use them for text, limited images and some audio. Also, wish to help others do the same as
conveniently as possible while reducing waste. Getting this objective clearly, greatly helps with my older PC efforts.
I have a somewhat limited historic interest in older PCs but this is more theoratical, practically I am not interested
in collecting older hardware just for the sake of it.

6.General Weather Note
It is getting to be quite cold outside. Can't carry a heavy desktop in the cold.
Perhaps can open it and take the parts apart, however getting cold to hold the
screw driver out too long in cold, can also be slippery with the snow and ice.
So, if I see a router or cable etc., perhaps I can grab. Rest I can give a minor
try, if it is too hard then better to be safe and abandon it fully, rather than
face unwanted risks.

7. For the most part, I am enjoying my time away from older PCs and continue this much needed break.

This was just done and am pleased to report that this PC is working ok again, it was last used in 2011 or so. I focused on just unscrewing the old mobo, screwing in the new mobo that I found on the street PC with onboard video with VGA output and plugging the connections in. So basically, I had to keep my baggage of learning about older PCs aside and focus slowly on just the connections. Glad I decided to do this slowly.

The Power LED is not working as it has been connected incorrectly, not a biggie, will see if this can be corrected sometime in the future.
Still need to check on this PC:
1. Net
2. DVD drive
3. Sound
4. Need to backup the data on this PC.
5. Upgrade the RAM, presently has just 1Gb
6. Block a PCI card port on the chasis that is currently open.
7. When the boot menu comes up with all the different OSes to boot, the Keyboard doesn't work to scroll and choose the different options, so it boots the default top choice. This is ok for now.
Edited to add: Was just advised that the Bios needs to be
setup to recognize USB Kb if possible, if not get a PS2 KB or a USB to PS2 adapter to solve this issue.
8. Got an error message when using this PC saying that sound crashed due to CPU overload or something like that. External speakers were not plugged in. This is something else to keep an eye out for on this PC.

The above can be done at convenience when I am in the mood for it and there is no immediate rush for it. I am not going to try another Mobo without onboard video. I don't like these.

Dropped the old C2D CPU accidentally. Removed all accessories from the Mobo such as fan, battery etc., Then removed the CPU and put back but it was not installed properly. Turned the mobo upside down and the C2D CPU dropped from a height of about 4 feet to the ground. Hope it still works, if not have to take this small loss, good learning lesson. Must turn the mobo upside down a few times at a safe height to ensure that there are no loose parts next time.

Edited to add:
Was advised to check the pins on the CPU, even one missing or bent pin meant that the CPU is dead I was told. Checked and so far all looks ok. Static can destroy CPU more than drops is another fact I learned today. Here is a related link:
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/...pu-ground.html

Was unable to remove the Mobo battery as it is a special socket, had to use a pen knife to pull it off.