I have an older 2014 desktop with 8 GB of DDR3 memory, an Intel J-series processor, and Windows 8 installed. Since Windows 8 is no longer supported, I'm considering Linux for better security.
Each week, I use a troop Gmail account, Google Sheets, and Google Forms to track fundraising. I also log into several websites, copy tables and online orders from a sales portal, and enter the information into a specific Google Sheet. I'm hoping to reduce the amount of repetitive work involved.
Would a lightweight Linux distribution such as one using LXQt or XFCE run well on this hardware, and would it provide reasonable power management? Since the computer would only be used once a week, I could also shut it down between uses.
I'm also trying to understand whether Google Gemini or another AI tool could help. Would I need Chrome, or would any modern browser work? Can an AI tool reliably automate website navigation and copying tables, or would it be safer and more dependable to create a Google Apps Script? I'm also wondering whether Docker would be useful for making the automation portable, and whether there are better tools than recording mouse clicks and pasting data manually.
I'm volunteering in several roles and would really like to save time, but I don't want to compromise the security of the account or fundraising records.
3 Answers
A current lightweight Linux distribution should run comfortably on that hardware. Look for an XFCE, LXQt, or similar desktop edition. Linux can suspend, but for a machine used only once a week, shutting it down completely is simpler and uses less power. Also, any normal up-to-date browser should be able to access Gmail, Sheets, Forms, and web-based AI tools; Chrome is not strictly required. Most desktop Linux systems will show a login screen unless you configure automatic login.
I would avoid giving an AI service your username, password, or direct control over fundraising data. AI can make mistakes, misread tables, or perform an action you didn’t intend. A better approach is to export or retrieve the data through supported methods and use a script to validate and transform it before writing to the spreadsheet. Google Apps Script is a strong fit because it can work directly with Sheets and Forms, and you can add checks for missing values, duplicate orders, and unexpected columns. If the older websites offer CSV exports, APIs, or downloadable reports, use those instead of screen scraping.
I agree that handing over login credentials would be risky. I’m hoping a scripted workflow can reduce the repetitive work without letting an AI make unsupervised changes to the records.
Docker probably isn’t necessary for this project. It is useful when you already run several services in containers or need a repeatable server deployment, but it adds another layer to learn for a small weekly task. Start with a Google Apps Script or a small, clearly tested program. Keep the spreadsheet as the source of truth, make a backup before each run, log what was imported, and require a manual review before committing changes. Recording mouse clicks should be the last resort because minor website changes can break the automation and cause bad data to be pasted into the wrong place.
That helps. I was mainly wondering whether choosing LXQt or XFCE would affect basic things like logging in and using Google’s web apps.