What do you do with your "old" system?

[Nubb]

Just curious what you all do with your old (retired) systems.

I do this:
New build == my new box (primary system).
(my "new builds" are almost 100% complete builds; case/mboard/cpu/mem/drives/keyboards/mouse, etc... almost everything except speakers/monitor)

Old "primary" box --> my "new" secondary box. For multi-box'n games, utils, huge help files (Dev libraries, various PDF's, etc), audio file storage, etc etc. Often do mundane net crap on this too (email, browsing, etc), no sense risking my main system. I tend to 2-box in lue of dual monitors (for browsing the net while gaming (cheats!, maps, voice comm, etc).

Old "secondary" box --> Usually pass down to mom/dad/brother/nephews/neices/friends/guildies-in-need .. and usually in that order. My last "Old 'secondary' box" sat in my kitchen for almost a year (nephew is now, happily, its owner).

I've never sold/auctioned my old systems. Dunno if any of you have (if so, any luck? It worth the trouble?). I just hate the idea of selling what was a "$2000" box, 1 to 2 years ago, for $250. I'd rather give it away, I assume many of you do the same.

How about schools? Anyone donate? Last comp I donated to a school was an Apple IIc about 16 years ago :p As anal as we are in the U.S., I bet that schools don't even take donations anymore "due to risks; your (questionably constructed non-Dell) system might have had porn on it, or terrorists agendas!".

Thanks,
Nubb

[JAdams]

Linux! :D

I like the idea of giving an old system away to someone who doesn't have a computer, though. That's how my family got our first computer. And, once people found out I was into computers, they started giving me old systems to play with. :)

[Fozzik]

My hand-me-down system is very similar to yours, Nubb...only real difference is that my wife is also a gamer, so there is sort of an offset thing happening. I don't just give her my old stuff, it's more like her one year and me the next, so each of us get a new PC every two years.

The older computers are used as secondary on my home network for storage/surfing/extra utility functions while playing games, and then eventually they get moved out to family/friends or taken apart for components to fix up friends/relatives machines. My daughter is also in the rotation now, when I upgraded a couple months ago, I actually sent up my old secondary machine for her.

[Feyshtey]

My old system goes to my wife, whose old system goes to her son.

From her son they go into the "just in case" pile in the back room that pisses my wife off to no end.

[janelled]

In my house me and my dad are the two big spenders on PC parts, so if I upgrade something, and he wants it, he gets first dibs. If not, it goes onto my mom, my sister, or my girlfriend. Same goes if he upgrades something. The leftovers my parents give to the church they attend. Occasionally I sell or give parts to my friends to help throw a little bit of life into their machines.

[Kullall]

Mmmmm, "just in case" pile. Delicious. I usually try to sell my old boxes for a couple hundred dollars and put that towards a new PC. Though I have had the same PC now since 2002 or so, so I will probably just give this one away.

[Razorwire]

Last upgraded my machine for SWG back when I played it, looking to upgrade again this year, my old machine will probably get kicked down to my daughter.

[_Aatlaar_]

Untill last year my upgrades went like this...


My Pc got better, old stuff in THE box

My Pc got better, old stuff in THE box

My Pc got better, old stuff in THE box2

My Pc got better, old stuff in THE box2

My Pc got better, Wife got her own PC, mine stopped breaking down...

My Pc got better, Wife got her own PC, mine stopped breaking down...

My Pc got better, Wife got her own PC, mine stopped breaking down, Inlaws asked me over to fix, help, whatever the computers they bought from gateway/dell...

My Pc got out-dated, wife broke hers every damn day (Click here for free stuff-OK!!)...

AAAnd here we are lmao


I'm working on it though, I still have enough crappola to build a few household utility PC's, but with my wife running them, it's just not worth the effort, lol.

[Lord_Vyper]

stuff about the wife ruining her comp

Lock her down! Firefox, MS anti-spyware, ZoneAlarm (configured by you), good anti-virus, etc.

And to keep on topic, my old systems get donated to the local school district. Good karma, and donations to schools = writeoff to the IRS for the purchase price of the PC.

[_Aatlaar_]

Lock her down! Firefox, MS anti-spyware, ZoneAlarm (configured by you), good anti-virus, etc.

Nah, she can click whatever she wants on her PC.

And besides...she, scares the hell out of me dude.

Nope, let her break hers I say. The power is mine, I fix when I have time!! :rolleyes:

[Breogan]

I usually sell my old stuff to buy the new, but my next upgrade will be a full system if finances allow it ;)

My current computer started as a K7 650 + Abit KA7 rig and is currently powered by an OC'd Sempron 2600 + DFI Lanparty motherboard. The only thing that remains from the original setup is the case and the floppy :p

[shiver]

A place to donate old lap tops would be cool the more I think about it. I have one that I should find a home for.

for PCs we normally have someone who wants us to upgrade their ancient computer which is really not upgradeable so we sell them one of our old ones for pretty cheap. It helps pay for the new one. My computer I have right now though… I might offer to family first. It is pretty nice.

[Lord_Vyper]

A place to donate old lap tops would be cool the more I think about it. I have one that I should find a home for.
Churches, schools, city/county employment agencies. Lots of places willing to take nearly whatever you're willing to give em.

[Jaymend]

I have four computers. I still have my first computer from college. I've since gotten three new ones. I don't know what to do with these old computers. I also have two CRT monitors (huge!) and two flat screens. Two of the computers are dead. Fried motherboard on one and who knows what on the other. I'm a pack rat, and both are sitting in storage as we speak.

[Nubb]

Jaymend you sound like me :) I still have my old 386-33DX BBS box (ran a bbs in the late 80's/early 90's). It's stuffed in a corner in my living room of all places. Even have my old Practical Periferals 14.4k external modem (I just can't get rid of it, it was my first expensive computer toy).

Another amusing thing I have is a stack of old hard drives (all functional, far as I know anyway). I keep telling myself I'll plug them in and look to see what's on them for some laughs. At least one has my BBS software and old message databases, that ought'a be fun for some memories. No clue what's on any of the others, hoping some have old EQ screenshots which I've "lost" otherwise.

More recent stuff I've given to relatives/friends. Lord Vyper posted just above about donating to schools/churchs/etc, you might look into that :)

Thanks,
Nubb

[Lord_Vyper]

Another amusing thing I have is a stack of old hard drives (all functional, far as I know anyway). I keep telling myself I'll plug them in and look to see what's on them for some laughs. At least one has my BBS software and old message databases, that ought'a be fun for some memories. No clue what's on any of the others, hoping some have old EQ screenshots which I've "lost" otherwise.

Heh, I have a box of old drives too. I have no idea where half of em came from either. I have 4 SPARC workstations drives, yet never owned a SPARC system.
Some of the drives cause evil trips down memory lane... Micropolis double height 3.5" drive, Quantum Bigfoot 5.25".. silicon history!

[Nubb]

Haha yeah, I have an old MFM drive, it's about the size of a shoebox. I know that one has some fun stuff on it (bbs software, and some old DOS games (ZorkII I know is on it). :P Took one apart years ago and the platters were easily an 1/8th of an inch thick. I think the read/write arm was the size of a pencil. In fact, I think it was a pencil.

[Slide]

Pull em apart for bits mostly. My old laptop with the bust screen is now a FreeBSD server.

[Giftmacher]

Hmm, well some of my old machines are with needy relatives but I'm surprised to not see more people putting Linux on their old boxes. I currently have an old Duron running Fedora core 4, which I use for running small work related jobs. I save desktop space by using Cygwin to access my Linux box remotely, I'm pretty clueless when it comes to networking so I was pretty chuffed with myself when I figured out how to make it work :D

Gift.