Richard Melville wrote: > Running old computers is often touted as the "green" option. It's a fact > that the two most vulnerable components in such computers are the power > supply and the hard disk. Having had both of these components fail at > various times on oldish boxes I can only infer that those on this mailing > list continually running *very* old computers must be continually replacing > these components. > > This is hardly an economic pursuit as new components for old computers are > always much more expensive than their modern counterparts (RAM for > instance). If, instead of new parts, old parts are being recycled then the > failure rate on a particular computer must be even greater. > > Finally, old computers are far less efficient than new ones in terms of > power consumed. So, they're large, noisy, power hungry, and expensive to > maintain. To conclude then, I really can't see the attraction. > Recycle them and treat yourself to something new, small, quiet, and > relatively powerful.
I agree with you Richard. I's also add that the newer systems are quite inexpensive compared to the older systems' initial cost. Today a brand new, reasonably full featured machine can be purchased for $300 US. I can remember when the same thing (with less memeory/cpu power) cost $5000. And that's before inflation is factored in. It is not even worth it to build your own machine from components any more. It may be useful for leaning or entertainment, but it certainly gains very little financially, if at all, to build from components any more. Note, my $300 reference is: # Desktop with AMD Athlon™ single-core processor 2850e, 3GB DDR2 memory, double-layer DVD±RW/CD-RW drive, 320GB hard drive, NVIDIA GeForce 6150 SE graphics, multi-in-one media reader and Windows 7 Home Premium # 18.5" flat-panel widescreen LCD monitor with ultrafast 5 ms response time, 50,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio and 2 built-in speakers; tilt for comfortable viewing; VGA input # HP Deskjet printer with 4800 x 1200 dpi color resolution and support for borderless 4" x 6" photos; Web Smart function for easy Internet printing Of course I'd decline the MS EULA right away and ask for a refund. -- Bruce -- http://linuxfromscratch.org/mailman/listinfo/lfs-support FAQ: http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/lfs/faq.html Unsubscribe: See the above information page
