Mark Hull-Richter wrote:
the only major distribution that really supports reiser natively is
SuSE I can live with that. I've heard unkind words about ext3, but so far no problems....
Use ext3 unless you know something else is better for your purpose. If you are creating/deleting new files by the thousands all the time it might be worth thinking about resiserfs.
frankly, I'd build a new computer, install Linux on it, then copy the files across the network. when done, recycle the old computer for parts, or sell it intact as is (its probably worth more as a working system than as parts).
(sigh) now you're talking money - it would cost me an extra $300-500 to do that, and I've already strained my budget and my credit to do the $400 for the upgrade. On the positive side, I've done this many times - been building and upgrading home machines since 1984, and I'm pretty good at that. This is the first time I'll be switching from an M$ OS to a real one. :-)
I'd compromise and get a new drive big enough to hold everything. You need a backup anyway.