If your hardware is truly elderly, it may lack the SSE2 instructions which Debian has been using in their 32-bit x86 builds for quite a while. If/when I get one of those Pocket 386 devices, this will matter. For now, I don’t have any hardware this old. So if this bites you, get in touch and let’s see what can be done.
Otherwise, we plan on using Debian’s 32-bit binaries–at least for now. I don’t have the pocket change to run a i386 build farm plus hosting of a full set of packages–it’s apparently 500+ gigabytes! When Debian stops building for 32-bit x86, we may have to get creative with torrent distros or something.
Oh, Chrome gets a special shout out here. I’ve mentioned that big corporate sponsorship feel, and that’s in full effect for Google’s browser. Unless a talented bulldog of a dev steps up, you’re going to have to look elsewhere for your 32-bit web browsing. Firefox for 32-bit x86, or maybe just my own browser