Rescuing PCs from the trash
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| Bob_Robertson Jan 22, 2008 4:25 PM EDT |
Three. So far, I've been able to get three, and two of them were sent from my sister so that I would do a data recovery first. What I'd like to know is how folks intercept the machines. How do you let complete strangers know that they don't have to throw them out? An ad in the local paper? Lawn signs (I'd have to move my Ron Paul sign...)? Direct mailing? |
| jdixon Jan 22, 2008 4:42 PM EDT |
> How do you let complete strangers know that they don't have to throw them out? An ad in the local phone book for computer recycling might do the trick. You might also try to get an article as a local human interest story from the local newspaper. I'd refrain from moving the Ron Paul sign. :) |
| land0 Jan 22, 2008 6:36 PM EDT |
We started going to our local computer stores every once in a while to pickup the older machines. In fact we just recently scored 9 complete boot able boxes. After a while you get know as "the guy." I have even setup and configured a few machines that a store sold right off their showroom floor. They made a profit and I spread around the Freedomware. :) My 13 year old daughter will be taking over this side of our business this year. I know, I know GNU/Linux is so hard to install and configure. :p |
| ColonelPanik Jan 22, 2008 7:04 PM EDT |
land0, Linux is a biatch, I know cause the head IT dude at the local library told me that it
was almost impossible to get Debian installed. And that new hardware made it even
harder. The only hard part I found was that it went so fast I didn't have time to get
more coffee. I gotta get something going. This is a good idea. |
| gus3 Jan 22, 2008 8:43 PM EDT |
What data security precautions are you putting in place? If you aren't wiping the systems in front of the donors, you may be setting yourself up for a lawsuit if/when one of them falls to an identity thief. The SANS newsletters are rife with stories of people who find USB keys or CD-R's left out, pick them up and put them in, with no regard to the integrity of the data on their computers. Many people just don't realize there's enough of their personal info on a HD that a fraudster could leave them homeless. Please be very, very careful doing this. |
| Sander_Marechal Jan 22, 2008 10:05 PM EDT |
Quoting:How do you let complete strangers know that they don't have to throw them out? Don't ask strangers. Ask your boss or a geek in your IT department. Have your friends to the same at their daytime jobs. My loot from the last year on my previous job: * Three HP NetServers. All are Dual PII 233 Mhz with external hardware RAID unit and 6 disks. They make great home servers though they are noisy. * One HP ProLiant ML370 G3. Dual Xeon 3.2 Ghz. Came with two internal hardware RAIDs. * One desktop from the 1 Ghz era * Two desktops from the PII/PIII era * A couple of 10/100 Mbps network cards, a few old video cards (sadly these are low profile cards) and about 1 Gb in assorted 64 Mb and 128 Mb RAM sticks. * Two 24-port 100 Mbps network switches. One of them has 1 Gigabit port. I could have gotten much more (about 20 PII/PIII computers) but I really didn't have any use for them. So I just removed a couple of network cards, video cards and some RAM from them instead. It's really amazing what companies throw away. It's even more amazing what they store somewhere in a basement and never use again. That's the stash you need to get your hands on. |
| gus3 Jan 22, 2008 10:35 PM EDT |
Quoting:They make great home servers though they are noisy.At my last job, we had two H-P PA-RISC systems, each with 3 power supplies. A hundred kilos per system is probably about right. When they powered up, it honestly sounded like jets about to taxi down the tarmac. I doubt I could use them for home servers without breaking a couple of the noise ordinances here. ;-) Ah, those were the days. |
| kingttx Jan 23, 2008 11:01 AM EDT |
You should hear some of these blade servers when the chassis is rebooted. Holy cow! |
| dinotrac Jan 23, 2008 11:30 AM EDT |
> I doubt I could use them for home servers without breaking a couple of the noise ordinances here. ;-) Are you kidding? Those would be perfect myth front-end boxes for watching shows with pretty people and crappy dialog! |
| Jose_X Jan 23, 2008 2:31 PM EDT |
>> What I'd like to know is how folks intercept the machines. How do you let complete strangers know that they don't have to throw them out? freegeek.org runs a type of operation that is interesting. Also, it should be possible to mimic them but convert part of the facility into a computing center (for profit or not) showcasing/selling/etc FOSS. I hope to have some success pushing into this area. I suppose first I'll have to research a little better and try to talk to folks with experience. Next, I'd be looking for various forms of partnerships with businesses/orgs. I (and anyone else that wants to take advantage) could use idea contributions or advice. http://www.thetuxproject.com/node/276 |
| Steven_Rosenber Jan 23, 2008 2:56 PM EDT |
I don't call my Gateway Solo 1450 "the $0 Laptop" for nothing. Its former owner was quoted $700 to repair its flimsy, busted DC power plug. Nothing short of a miracle and maybe 24 straight hours of work would get the motherboard out of the case, so I just did a quick-and-dirty solder-atop-the-motherboard job and got the thing running. Do the busted PCMCIA slot, busted USB jack (I've still got one left) and dead battery bother me? Hell no. A lot of people have a very, shall we say "inflated" view of what their old laptop or desktop computer is worth, even though it's just sitting in their garage, doing nothing for no one. I've found that it's easier to ask friends and relatives what they have lying around that you can take off their hands. Offering them a bit of tech support on their current equipment doesn't hurt, either. |
| jdixon Jan 27, 2008 6:56 PM EDT |
> freegeek.org runs a type of operation that is interesting. That reminds me of another organization which might be useful for recycling computers: http://www.freecycle.org/ You might want to see if there's one in your local area. |
| Bob_Robertson Jan 28, 2008 3:47 AM EDT |
> http://www.freecycle.org/ I can ping it, but it won't http connect. Is it working for other people? |
| alc Jan 28, 2008 3:58 AM EDT |
Works here. |
| Sander_Marechal Jan 28, 2008 6:29 AM EDT |
Works here as well. |
| Bob_Robertson Jan 28, 2008 7:09 AM EDT |
Fascinating. Oh well, maybe a Google cache page will work so at least I can read about it. |
| Steven_Rosenber Jan 28, 2008 10:05 AM EDT |
Trying to get old, moldy hardware to work was the No. 1 thing that drove me toward Linux. I spent many, many hours trying to find a working Web browser for my Mac Powerbook 1400 under System 7.6.1. The "best" is IE 5. If Linux was able to run on that machine, it would be great (not a nu-bus, so no go), but when I found out that I could take '90s-era computers and actually put up-to-date software on them -- and do it all free and legal -- I was hooked. Now I'm running: 1997 beige box with Pentium II MMX 333 MHz and 256 MB RAM (still has Windows 2000 but runs Puppy from CD) 1999 Compaq Armada 7770dmt laptop with Pentium II MMX 233 MHz (Debian Etch with Xfce on the hard drive, Puppy 2.13 and Damn Small Linux 4.0 on CD) 2002?? Gateway Solo 1450 laptop with Celeron 1.2 GHz, recently bumped up to 1 GB RAM (Debian Lenny and Wolvix Hunter 1.1.0 on the drive, Puppy 3.00 on CD) And I'm working on getting the 1996 Powerbook 1400 to run as a terminal over the serial port. All I need is the proper cables and a big bottle of something strong. |
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