Hi,

I recently recieved Redhat 7 in the mail as a gift from a friend.

Unfortunately, nothing I own has compatible graphics drivers for the X server.
My Vostro 1700 is missing southbridge drivers needed to install to the hard drive, and QEMU's CirrusLogic emulation is.... bad.

Now would be a good time to pick up a more period-appropriate computer. I need one for MINIX, anyway, as I'm struggling to run that too.

I searched eBay for P2-class Thinkpads in decent condition but the Thinkpad enthusiast market has made those unaffordable to someone of my income, and I'm not very familiar with what other OEMs offered.

What is something cheap that anyone here has personal experience with and would suggest buying used?

My only requirement is that it's from before Y2K, and is from the pentium 1 through pentium 3 range, with an optical drive (readonly is fine). I'm aware lots of older laptops had ghosting issues so having a good LCD panel is a must, I can't be bothered with a VGA monitor/dongle. Do list the specs with your suggestions.

No desktops if you can help it, I have four of them in a single room already and the cables are becoming unmanageable.

Thank you in advance for the help.

I would love too help you but I've only used ThinkPads in my lifetime
Wish you luck :)

Old Toughbook, flex your power as king of the computer weirdos
Just make sure they come with the hard drive caddy like these do
https://www.ebay.com/itm/387469278709?

Compaq has some good offerings when it comes to mid-90s laptops. Their Armada and Presario lines are cheaper to find used than what most Thinkpads go for. I have a Presario 1610, which has a decent screen with just a little ghosting, and a good amount of i/o ports without the dock.
This goes for most old laptops, but expect to clean whatever deteriorated rubberized coating that's on it, and dealing with hairline cracks by the hinges.