Question: I have an old PC of mine that I'm thinking of preparing for use by a school-going child. It's a decade old PC with a 40GB hard disk, Pentium 4 processor, and I believe 1GB of RAM. 

As of now, I have:

* Installed Lubuntu and Windows XP on it (Vista and 7 don't have drivers for this hardware, and yes I've searched the manufacturer's site and other places)
* Installed Avast and Outpost Security Suite on the XP
* "Pinned" Khan Academy, Coursera, Udacity and Codecademy on the Firefox "new tab" page

Other than this, what can I do to prepare this computer for this purpose? My knowledge of desktop software for education is lacking, in both Windows and Linux. I'm not sure if whoever buys this will have a good Internet connection (I'm in India), so desktop software will probably prove much more useful that the bookmarks above. 

I'm also looking at free parental control software to install on this, I'll make that a separate question. Edit: [The question is now at the Software Recommendations site](https://softwarerecs.stackexchange.com/questions/1882/free-parental-control-software). 

(I wasn't sure where on StackExchange this would belong, but superuser seemed the closest candidate. If there's a better suited site, please do migrate, thanks.)

Answer: 
The first thing I think is to eliminate Windows XP, [it is already obsolete](http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/end-support-help).

Because it is an old computer, I believe it is not feasible to install a system like Windows Vista, it requires better hardware to run properly.

I would advise you to install any Linux distribution, such as the [`UberMix`](http://www.ubermix.org/index.html).

> 
> The ubermix is an all-free, specially built, Linux-based operating
>  system designed from the ground up with the needs of education in
>  mind. Built by educators with an eye towards student and teacher
>  empowerment, ubermix takes all the complexity out of student devices
>  by making them as reliable and easy-to-use as a cell phone, without
>  sacrificing the power and capabilities of a full operating system.
>  With a turn-key, 5 minute installation, 20 second quick recovery
>  mechanism, and more than 60 free applications pre-installed, ubermix
>  turns whatever hardware you have into a powerful device for learning.
> 
> 
>
The Ubuntu series is great if you're trying to teach someone how to use a computer. So is Windows XP at the presiding moment.

If they are learners they need to probably have something around 1.7 Ghz with maybe 100-200 Gb and 2 GB of Ram and 32 Bit.

Once they have mastered the two, I suggest buying a new laptop with amazing specs if they can take care of it right. Probably something with 2.4+ Ghz, 400+ Gb, An intel processor, and 4+ GB of RAM and probably 64 Bit.

Regarding the Operating Systems when they've mastered, you should probably go with Arch Linux, Linux Mint, or Debian if they wish to pursue Linux more and want to begin programming or wish to play a lot of Java games like Minecraft.

If they wish to pursue a more Sims/Professional Computing Experience, look into Windows 8/8.1. They have state-of-the-art technology (so does Linux as well).