Cledus

I am new to linux. I have an idea and I am just wondering if it will work. I want to run Linux on an external usb hard drive.(60GB) The reason is so I can switch between my to computers without seeing the internal hard drives. I have used elearnix and mandrakemove. I like what I can do with both on them. I can boot on the CD and see the external drive, but I can never save any settings. I am using an AMD Athlon 1.2 ,700MB of RAM, 400MB drive (It was all I had left over after building my new computer) as my test computer. If it works I plan to move between this pc and my intel 2.6, 1 GB RAM, 800 FSB, 120 GB drive. Where do I start? I installed 9.2 on the external drive on my AMD, but keep getting L99 99 99 ...... Help please. Cledus