Ideal distribution for a 2-core Intel P9300 laptop is Ubuntu or Linux Mint.
Ideal distribution for a 2-core Intel P9300 laptop is Ubuntu or Linux Mint.
Are you interested in the top overall distribution for your old Dell laptop with a dual-core P9300 processor? You're looking for something suitable for a Plex player, not a server, and only needing one stream. It seems the system might be quite outdated.
Share your GPU and RAM details. Most Linux systems perform better with older hardware compared to Windows, mainly due to the differences in design.
Crunchbang+ Highlights that Ubuntu struggles on older systems. Distros with LXDE work best. Lightweight options like CB or Debian with base install and LXDE consume under 200MB RAM.
You've just confirmed my argument; it's the DE that matters, not the distro.
For numerous users, the distribution combines Linux with a standard desktop environment. This explains the popularity of Lubuntu and Kubuntu.
Choose Lubuntu or Kubuntu to avoid extra work. For Debian-based systems, picking packages manually is easier with Debian itself.
If you're not interested in a graphical interface, consider using Ubuntu Server or a similar option. When the system is mainly handling file delivery, a standard GUI might not be necessary, though you'll likely need more effort to manage it. Alternatively, you could install any operating system and completely bypass the default desktop environment.