Originally posted by AKDejaVu:
I've seen these compact systems before and have seriously considered buying one. The only thing that's held me back is the thought that installing LINUX on one might not be that easy. There is no ability to replace hardware in order to find a "more LINUX compatable" device.
I think this system would work fine with Linux. S3 has a Linux XFree86 server for the Savage4 chip on their site. The Realtek 8139 network chip has Linux driver (included in Linux kernel source) as does the VIA VT82C686B "super southbridge" AC97 sound chip. The motherboard is a Flex-ATX form factor and
might be upgraded later. There's a few Flex-ATX boards on PriceWatch, although fitting an Athlon CPU with a huge heatsink may prove problematic in those tight quarters.
[ 11-10-2001: Message edited by: Sancho ]