486SX runs "newish" Linux?

[Kevin Brown]

RH7.2 requires a lot of space.  That 1.2GB hard drive will be totally filled by
RH, leaving you with no empty space to do anything with.  You would probably be
best off trying debian or an older RH/mandrake distro.

> I have an old 486SX PC that I thought would be good as a basic Linux install
> to allow my kids to surf with.  It's specs are below.
> 
> RH 7.2 install just gets a little ways in and gives up because there is no
> math co-processor.  Slackware 8.0 when clear through the entire installation
> and fails on the first actual boot, printing "LI" of the lilo boot message
> and freezing completely.
> 
> Will any of the "standard" distributions work on this PC or should I go
> looking for some distro specialized for low powered systems?  Or, perhaps the
> lilo problem has nothing to do with low power?
> 
> SPECS:
> "Dell Precision 486/33S", 33 MHz 486SX, 16MB RAM, 1.2GB IDE hard drive
> (master), 24x CD-ROM (slave), sound card, Intel EtherExpress PRO ISA network
> card.  Video on the motherboard (I don't remember brand), 3.5" floppy drive,
> serial mouse on com1, keyboard.