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#11
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Heap of Obsolete Hardware
On Feb 13, 7:32 pm, Grinder wrote:
wrote: On Feb 13, 11:40 am, Grinder wrote: My local public library has a pile of antiquated PCs. There might be a couple of 486s in the pile, but suspect most are 386s. Since no one has the courage to just discard these crappers, we've managed to find a charity that will take any PC, "as long as it works." Where are you located? There are a number of computer recyclers around the country. I'm in the middle of Illinois. Previously I obtained information about recyclers, but the library board has been unenthusiastic about that approach, for reasons unknown to me. They have, though, generally agreed that offloading them to a nearby charity is acceptable. I'm just trying to get them moved out. I work at a computer recycler (which is also a nonprofit, and yes, a charity), in Eugene, OR. We don't care it it works. But It's my job to rebuild a great many systems for sale or donation to the community. 386 and 486 laptops are generally OK for grandma to play solitaire on. But desktop machines in that class are scrap, given the abundance of p3s and better. Physically, machines that old usually are not in great shape, the clock battery has usually died, and it's not usually the standard one we see today (may be integrated into the cmos itself) , the hard drives are way too small, and often too dead, floppy drives and cd drives fail. Not too economical to rebuild a machine in that class. That does not mean that they aren't valuable. Copper, aluminum, plastics, gold, and circuit boards, among other things are resold in bulk. Anyway, here's a list of recyclers in your area. It can't hurt to find out if any are also non-profits and charities, that way the concerns of the board can be satisfied. http://www.illinoisrecycles.org/byteback_list.html The provenance of the hardware is such that I should wipe the drives clean. While I'm at it, it's reasonable for me to put some sort of basic OS on the PCs. Outside of FreeDOS, does anyone have any candidates for those machines? Is there a simple, pared down version of Linux that would apply? Thanks for your suggestions. http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/ But that only applies to the top 486s. Win 3.11 is about all you can do with the 386s Win95 or MAYBE 98 should be OK for the 486s Thanks. |
#12
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Heap of Obsolete Hardware
On Tue, 13 Feb 2007 19:40:16 GMT, Grinder
wrote: My local public library has a pile of antiquated PCs. There might be a couple of 486s in the pile, but suspect most are 386s. Since no one has the courage to just discard these crappers, we've managed to find a charity that will take any PC, "as long as it works." The provenance of the hardware is such that I should wipe the drives clean. While I'm at it, it's reasonable for me to put some sort of basic OS on the PCs. Outside of FreeDOS, does anyone have any candidates for those machines? Is there a simple, pared down version of Linux that would apply? Thanks for your suggestions. Take care not to get stuck with these systems, confirm the charity knows they're 386s and will accept them as-is, providing you state that they're working. Even then I'd resist the urge to salvage these junkers. They're too old for reasonable use, their expected lifespan has expired, and further maintenance is far exceeding their actual value or usefulness. Even moreso once you consider that you may be more able to configure and install some stripped OS, than the recipient is to use it for the intended purpose. On the other hand if you had such a system that you were familiar with, knew the particular quirks and already had a purpose for, it might still be a bit viable... but then the time invested is already partly spent, more a matter of upkeep. |
#13
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Heap of Obsolete Hardware
Thanks for your suggestions. http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/ But that only applies to the top 486s. Win 3.11 is about all you can do with the 386s Win95 or MAYBE 98 should be OK for the 486s Thanks. Hey... I'm going to be able to get rid of *all* my low end machines... someone wants 12 machines for use *only* as word processors!!! I have a bunch of P1's that will finally have a home... if I had any 486's or even 386's I'd have a home for all of them ! Clean basement soon! |
#14
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Heap of Obsolete Hardware
On Feb 13, 10:40 pm, Grinder wrote:
My local public library has a pile of antiquated PCs. There might be a couple of 486s in the pile, but suspect most are 386s. Since no one has the courage to just discard these crappers, we've managed to find a charity that will take any PC, "as long as it works." The provenance of the hardware is such that I should wipe the drives clean. While I'm at it, it's reasonable for me to put some sort of basic OS on the PCs. Outside of FreeDOS, does anyone have any candidates for those machines? Is there a simple, pared down version of Linux that would apply? Thanks for your suggestions. You remind me that it was not so long ago we were using Windows 3.1 and 4 MB RAM on 386s, and life was going on. I have been wondering: after all this Microsoft evolution from Windows 3.1 to Windows Vista, would one still be required to purchase the ancient OS like Win 3.1? It were shipping in 6 floppy disks! It, otherwise works fine, even has a low-end wordprocessor "Write" and Paintbrush, plus all basic functionality of Windows. I'd like someone who knows (say from Microsoft) to chip in here, e.g., if they sell ancient programs or even allow one to install one copy in multiple machines. |
#15
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Heap of Obsolete Hardware
On Feb 15, 3:20 am, "philo" wrote:
Thanks for your suggestions. http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/ But that only applies to the top 486s. Win 3.11 is about all you can do with the 386s Win95 or MAYBE 98 should be OK for the 486s Thanks. Hey... I'm going to be able to get rid of *all* my low end machines... someone wants 12 machines for use *only* as word processors!!! I have a bunch of P1's that will finally have a home... if I had any 486's or even 386's I'd have a home for all of them ! Clean basement soon! Old machines talk makes me talk about my beloved Contura Aero 486. The tiny notebood was the first computer I'd bought, therefore I adored it and kept it even after buying later-model desktop machines. It is indeed a delicate little thing, so I'd replaced about everything--from the notorious "clutch" to the display ribbon cable to the keyboard to the hard drive. I even bought a Kingston 16 add-on RAM to bring it up to 20 mega, and I could then upgrade from win 3.1 to Win 95. Eventually i came to standstill when the display backlight went. I still have it and I'd like to recover some cost such as the Kingston that I'd bought for $80. I have its PCMCIA floppy, Powr brick and its cute carrying case. On the other hand, can I get the backlight? it's a long thingy diameter less than a pencil. Any takers? |
#16
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Heap of Obsolete Hardware
On Feb 16, 6:46 am, "Dan" wrote:
On Feb 15, 3:20 am, "philo" wrote: Thanks for your suggestions. http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/ But that only applies to the top 486s. Win 3.11 is about all you can do with the 386s Win95 or MAYBE 98 should be OK for the 486s Thanks. Hey... I'm going to be able to get rid of *all* my low end machines... someone wants 12 machines for use *only* as word processors!!! I have a bunch of P1's that will finally have a home... if I had any 486's or even 386's I'd have a home for all of them ! Clean basement soon! Old machines talk makes me talk about my beloved Contura Aero 486. The tiny notebood was the first computer I'd bought, therefore I adored it and kept it even after buying later-model desktop machines. It is indeed a delicate little thing, so I'd replaced about everything--from the notorious "clutch" to the display ribbon cable to the keyboard to the hard drive. I even bought a Kingston 16 add-on RAM to bring it up to 20 mega, and I could then upgrade from win 3.1 to Win 95. Eventually i came to standstill when the display backlight went. I still have it and I'd like to recover some cost such as the Kingston that I'd bought for $80. I have its PCMCIA floppy, Powr brick and its cute carrying case. On the other hand, can I get the backlight? it's a long thingy diameter less than a pencil. Any takers? You might look for the same model machine on ebay. That way you'll have more parts. |
#17
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Heap of Obsolete Hardware
On Feb 16, 6:11 am, "Dan" wrote:
On Feb 13, 10:40 pm, Grinder wrote: My local public library has a pile of antiquated PCs. There might be a couple of 486s in the pile, but suspect most are 386s. Since no one has the courage to just discard these crappers, we've managed to find a charity that will take any PC, "as long as it works." The provenance of the hardware is such that I should wipe the drives clean. While I'm at it, it's reasonable for me to put some sort of basic OS on the PCs. Outside of FreeDOS, does anyone have any candidates for those machines? Is there a simple, pared down version of Linux that would apply? Thanks for your suggestions. You remind me that it was not so long ago we were using Windows 3.1 and 4 MB RAM on 386s, and life was going on. I have been wondering: after all this Microsoft evolution from Windows 3.1 to Windows Vista, would one still be required to purchase the ancient OS like Win 3.1? It were shipping in 6 floppy disks! It, otherwise works fine, even has a low-end wordprocessor "Write" and Paintbrush, plus all basic functionality of Windows. I'd like someone who knows (say from Microsoft) to chip in here, e.g., if they sell ancient programs or even allow one to install one copy in multiple machines. Windows 3.11 has a second life in video poker machines, and other embedded applications. Yes, Microsoft is still going after windows 3.11 pirates. Hell, they're still going after DOS 6.22 pirates. |
#18
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Heap of Obsolete Hardware
" wrote:
.... snip ... Windows 3.11 has a second life in video poker machines, and other embedded applications. Yes, Microsoft is still going after windows 3.11 pirates. Hell, they're still going after DOS 6.22 pirates. Why would anyone in their right mind pirate DOS 6.22. If they want those features FreeDos is available without cost, licensing, etc. Also probably eliminates quite a few bugs. -- http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/~pgut001/pubs/vista_cost.txt http://www.securityfocus.com/columnists/423 "A man who is right every time is not likely to do very much." -- Francis Crick, co-discover of DNA "There is nothing more amazing than stupidity in action." -- Thomas Matthews |
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