Xubuntu works terrible on a PIII 1GHz 128MB ram

[Tomi Urankar]

I installed Xubuntu Gutsy with alternative CD. And after an hour long installation I was finally at the desktop. But I couldn't do anything since the HDD was constantly working. Just to open the Start Menu I had to wait for a minute and the mouse was jerky.

So then I reinstalled Xubuntu by using the Server option and after the base was installed I just install XFCE, XORG, FIREFOX, ABIWORD, GNUMERIC with APTITUDE. Now Xubuntu works better than before. But once I open up FIREFOX or any other program it starts to growl again.

clean boot with only XFCE terminal opened
################
tom@laptop:~$ free -m
             total used free shared buffers cached
Mem: 114 111 2 0 0 17
-/+ buffers/cache: 94 20
Swap: 14
################
clean boot with firefox and XFCE terminal opened
tom@laptop:~$ free -m
             total used free shared buffers cached
Mem: 114 112 2 0 0 20
-/+ buffers/cache: 92 22
Swap: 149 32 116
################

I thought 128MB ram is enough for normal work in XFCE I guess this is not true. I mean even WinXP which was 3years old and full of software worked much better on this lappy.

Specs:
Laptop HP OMNIBOOK
HDD 10GB
128MB SDR PC 133
PIII 1GHZ

[Koen (koen-beek)]

Firefox uses a lot of memory, an alternative for low mem machines is dillo :
sudo aptitude install dillo

also, have a look at the following page : https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Installation/LowMemorySystems

[Tomi Urankar (tomi0)]

Thx for the link, But still on XUBUNTU site it says suitable for 128MB ram. I have tried it and it works so slow even without any open programs.
So it should be changed to at least 256MB RAM

[arrrghhh (arrrghhh)]

try KDE - i found that it actually runs better than XFCE does on ALL my systems. from my high-end computer at home to my outdated laptop at work, XFCE was actually slower to respond (in every aspect...) than KDE.

if it's good enough for linus, it's good enough for me.

[Tomi Urankar (tomi0)]

Tha main problem with XUBUNTU is that on the default install U can not do anything on the desktop. Because it is simply to sluggish to even open up Start Menu and this is without any other open problems.

So XUBUNTU is NOT for low memory machines. Even a friend of mine tried XUBUNTU on a 128MB RAM. He says it was so slow that is impossible to do anything.

[Koen (koen-beek)]

exact xubuntu requirement on site are the following :

To run the Desktop CD (LiveCD + Install CD), you need 128 MB RAM to run or 192 MB RAM to install. The Alternate Install CD only requires you to have 64 MB RAM.
To install Xubuntu, you need 1.5 GB of free space on your hard disk.
Once installed, Xubuntu can run with 64 MB RAM, but it is strongly recommended to have at least 128 MB RAM.

these are obviously minimum requirement and if you choose the lowest your system may be slow
to install the xubuntu desktop you need 192 MB - once it's installed 128 MB sould by sufficient for reasonable adequate speed (considering your PC)
if you only have 128MB it might be best to install via the alternate install CD

[Koen (koen-beek)]

just one more comment

firefox takes a lot of memory -- an alternate browser is probably better for low mem systems
opera is probably already better
for real low mem systems dillo might also be a solution

[Jim Campbell (jwcampbell)]

Xubuntu website team: should we consider changing the minimum requirements for xubuntu-based systems? 128mb *works*, but is sluggish.

[Cody A.W. Somerville (cody-somerville)]

I think bumping the min to 192mb and the recommended to 256mb would be fair.
------Original Message------
From: Jim Campbell
Sender: <email address hidden>
To: <email address hidden>
ReplyTo: Bug 161962
Sent: 8 Mar 2008 14:16
Subject: [Bug 161962] Re: Xubuntu works terrible on a PIII 1GHz 128MB ram

Xubuntu website team: should we consider changing the minimum
requirements for xubuntu-based systems? 128mb *works*, but is sluggish.

** Changed in: xubuntu-meta (Ubuntu)
       Status: New => In Progress

--
Xubuntu works terrible on a PIII 1GHz 128MB ram
https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/161962
You received this bug notification because you are a member of Xubuntu
Website Team, which is a direct subscriber.

Sent from my BlackBerry device on the Rogers Wireless Network

[Vincent (vinnl)]

Sounds fine to me, changed.

[Tomi Urankar (tomi0)]

have gotten another 128MB stick so I now have 256MB on my lappy and XUBUNTU works much better.
Great for upping up the minimum and recommended specification.
Was really annoyed by this since it was something similar that MS does to promote its products. I mean the minimum specs for WinXP are a joke:
PC with 300 megahertz (MHz) or higher processor clock speed recommended; 233-MHz minimum required;
(Intel Pentium/Celeron family, AMD K6/Athlon/Duron family, or compatible processor recommended)
128 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher recommended
(64 MB minimum supported; may limit performance and some features)
1.5 Gigabyte (GB) of available hard disk space
Super VGA (800 × 600) or higher resolution video adapter and monitor
CD-ROM or DVD drive
Keyboard and Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device