Distributions for older laptops

Some distros to try that should fit (assuming you have say 64 to 96 MB RAM like my old
ThinkPad 560, some will run in less):

* Damn Small Linux - the 2.4 kernel is quite good for this vintage of hardware.  Knoppix
based, very small download and in RAM, uses real bash and vim by default, can add dpkg and apt
but not 100% Debian compatible. Fluxbox or JWM.  I found it was impossible to join the forums
(no admin response), but I do run this on my ThinkPad.

* Puppy Linux - very newbie friendly but no bash or vi by default, many wizards, very
fragmented set of derived distros, friendly community. Fluxbox or JWM.

Others I haven't tried that are worth a look perhaps are: SliTaz (really tiny, 25 MB ish),
Slax, Ubuntu Lite, and many others...  See this list of distros ordered by size:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=575456 (mostly not Ubuntu based).

Ubuntu Lite is not an official variant but it's aiming for 56 MB RAM - see
http://ubuntulite.tuxfamily.org/ and http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=98233

If you are short of time I would just try DSL and stick with that if it works well enough for
you.  However if you have a favourite distro family such as Slackware or Ubuntu then a derived
distro may be better.

You should also search for your laptop name and the distro in question to get an idea of
whether it will work OK.

I would recommend Opera on this sort of distro, but getting a security updated version may be
hard - this is one reason to pursue the UbuntuLite option as that makes it easier.  Buying a
large Flash drive is a good way to revive an old laptop - internal CF drives are also a good
option.