> Should I resort to an old Linux distribution? Or is there some way I > can build a Linux system on my installed Debian system for the old PC?
Read and learn: http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/ You can build your own system (on the running Debian system), but it might be sufficient for you to read about the boot process and learn how a Linux system starts up. Maybe you can go on to figure out what the problem with your live CD is. I built an LFS image for a system such as yours. It was a minimal system to boot and connect to an NFS server. I built a kernel on my (Debian) system and put together a boot image as described. It was actually a fun learning experience (and I don't mean it euphemistically, it actually worked!). Have fun! Andrew
