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Fixing up Street Abandoned ComputersDec 22 '00 Write an essay on this topic.Walking down the street one day, you come across a pile of trash, and on top of the trash are several computers. What a find! you say; but they may be more trouble than they are worth. The trouble with throwaway computers is that they are often labor intensive to fix, and are often not worth it, unless you need a computer. The computers may be stripped of all-or-most of its parts, or damaged in some way that is hard to detect until you plug it in and find out. Most of the time, the computer is just too old, the cpu (if still there) is ten generations out of date. If you do find a computer that looks like a reasonable prospect for a fix-me-upper, and you want to go ahead, then by all means, go for it. Computers built from spare parts found in the street are very cheap. As long as you don't buy parts for them and find all you need from abandoned computers, the computers are practically free. They are, however, very labor intensive to upgrade, and require knowledge of legacy systems. Computer hobbyists, and the computer-needy/desperate need only apply. Ok, the first thing to know when you come across a computer in the street is, is it worth it fixing it up? If the entire inside of the computer is gutted, or stripped, then the answer is no. Don't take the case unless you need it. If you are lucky enough to find a computer with everything inside intact and undamaged (or minor damage), then lucky you. Take a look at the cpu and decide whether or not you want to take it with you. If the cpu is a 486, then leave it. If it is a socket 7 (pentium, k6-2, cyrix), then take it. Pentium II, III, celerons are just too new to find their way into the trash right now, but who knows. Now that you have decided to pick up the computer, you have to drag it home. If you have a car handy, or some means of transporting it, good for you. Many old computer are heavy due to the fact that the cases are made of what appears to be heavy gauge steel. Newer cases these days are lightweight because they are mainly flimsy sheets of metal and plastic. A rule of thumb: if the computer looks really old, or is heavy, leave it, chances are that the cpu inside is a 486, or older. The only thing of worth is probably the floppy disk drive. Once home, find out how much work needs to be spent on the computer. If some parts are missing, figure out if it is worth it replacing it with spares you have around, or consider purchasing it. Anything costing over 5-10 dollars might not worth it depending on the age of the parts inside. The problem with old systems is upgrading. You need to research out the type of motherboard that's in the computer in case you want to tinker with it like overclocking the cpu, which is a recommended option. You might want to fix the hard drive, or temporarily plugging in a cd rom to install an operating system. What is the usefulness of a street computer? it depends on how old the computer is. If it is decent two-three years old, then consider yourself lucky, people have computers in their houses that are 4-6 years old. A two year old computer can be put to good use. I know someone who uses one as a web server. If worse comes to worse, sell the computer part-by-part on an auction site. Places like eBay are full of old computer parts and junk. The only thing of any worth is the cpu, memory, hard drive, video, sound, and cd rom. the rest can go in the trash. Or you can keep the parts for later use. By the way, the only surefire way to find a street abandoned computer is not to go looking for one, but to accidently come across one when you least expect it, you also have to live in a place where people throw out computers all the time, like in a city.  |
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