Why not just use a lite load of Linux rather than load up on spyware?
That’s what I was going to say. Linux is great on older machines.
I have an old (from 2015) Nextbook Flexx 10A “2 in 1 laptop/tablet” with a quad-core Intel Atom x5-Z8300 processor running at 1.33 GHZ with 2GB system memory with a 32GB SSD and a 64GB SD card. We purchased it from Samsclub for $89 which at the time seemed like an incredible value.
And actually my wife got a lot of use out of it with its tiny 10” touch screen and diminutive detachable keyboard. It still works, but now that we are used to much more capable hardware it does feel clunky and awkward to use.
It came with Windows 10. As Windows 10 became more and more bloated with age I always thought that with the Flexx’s specs Android or Linux would be a better fit. But I and many other Flexx owners were never able to get it to work well with any flavor of Linux or Android. And it was not for lack of trying.
What couldn't we get to work? Sound, wifi, Bluetooth, display only working in portrait with the keyboard attached... etc. etc... As so many tinkering style projects do, it turned into a giant waste of time. There is a lot of older hardware that are just not ideal for operating systems other than what came on them. This is partially because of planned obsolescence and partially because the manufacturers of a lot of specialty hardware, write drivers intended only for the operating system that they expect it to be used on.
Because with Google you download and click install.
With Linux you have to read 100+ page technobabble instructions on how to Mount Drives, bridge Kernels, Shells, BIOS and Communication protocols.