May 31, 2026
Old chips, fresh chaos
Linux/M68k
Ancient computers are having a comeback, and the internet is delightfully divided
TLDR: Linux/m68k says over 2,100 people are still using Linux on very old computers, hoping that number proves the platform deserves support. The community is split between cheering the retro dedication, joking that these relics may outlast newer systems, and wondering why anyone would do this at all.
A tiny but stubborn corner of the internet is throwing a full-on victory party: Linux/m68k says it now has more than 2,100 confirmed users, all rallying around getting a modern free operating system onto old Motorola-powered machines from the 1980s and 1990s. Think classic Amigas, Ataris, early Macs, NeXT boxes, and other beige legends that most people would assume are museum pieces by now. The site is practically waving a sign at software companies: look, there are enough of us to matter!
But the real fun is in the comments, where the mood swings wildly between admiration, confusion, and pure retro-chaos. One of the biggest crowd-pleasers was the gleeful joke that 68k might outlive 486 support, which is exactly the kind of nerd prophecy that gets old-school computer fans cackling. Others were more skeptical, basically asking: why struggle to run a current system on ancient hardware when newer machines are faster, easier, and won’t take forever to build software on? It’s a very real split: is this practical computing, or just a beautiful hobby?
Then came the lovable disaster energy. One commenter dreamed of reviving an old Mac only after replacing the power supply and leaking capacitors, while another casually dropped that Apple’s own docs were wrong and they might need to explain how the keyboard really works. The driest mic-drop of all? “Not recommended for new designs.” In other words: the machines are old, the fans are stubborn, and the comments are having the time of their lives.
Key Points
- •The article reports more than 2,100 confirmed Linux/m68k users and asks unregistered users to complete a registration form.
- •Linux/m68k is a Linux port for systems using Motorola 68020, 68030, 68040, and 68060 processors.
- •Current m68k kernel releases are described as stable on Amiga, Atari, many Apple Macintosh models, and several VMEbus single-board computers from BVM, Motorola, and Tadpole.
- •Ports are underway for the HP 9000/300 series, NeXT workstation, Q40, Q60, and Sun 3 series workstations.
- •The site provides resources including news, documentation, distributions, FTP download locations, mailing lists, newsgroups, books, mirror sites, and administrative guidance.