Old Sony Vaio FS115S (from 2005) how to put it to use?

[AndBaggio]

So I have an old Sony Vaio FS115S bought in 2005.

I would like to use it somehow so that my kid can use it for school. Do I have any hope that it will still work or should I just give up and put it in the trash?

I tried putting Windows 7, Windows 10 and Windows Thin PC, but it seems like they are all just a little bit too much for it. It has only 1 gb of RAM.

Can I use it for something else?

 

[COLGeek]

Install a lite Linux distro, something like Puppy Linux, to teach the kids new skills.

Puppy Linux Forum

 

[USAFRet]

Linux (PuppyLinux is a good small one)
LibreOffice
FireFox

They'll never know the difference, until they try to install some games.

 

[AndBaggio]

Linux (PuppyLinux is a good small one)
LibreOffice
FireFox

They'll never know the difference, until they try to install some games.

Ok thanks. I will install puppylinux, but what about the drivers? sound, wifi, screen, graphic card... does linux do that all by itself?

 

[USAFRet]

Ok thanks. I will install puppylinux, but what about the drivers? sound, wifi, screen, graphic card... does linux do that all by itself?

The only thing that might be an issue is WiFi, but probably not even that.

I did exactly this with an even older Sony VAIO.
Linux, Firefox, etc...
My daughter (20 yrs old at the time) was staying with us for the summer. I gave her the laptop, and said nothing about "what OS" was on it.
After a couple of weeks, I asked her how it was going.
"Just fine."
She and her friend didn't even notice the difference.

Most users do not know nor care about "Windows". They use applications, not the operating system.