Path: ...!eternal-september.org!feeder3.eternal-september.org!news.eternal-september.org!eternal-september.org!.POSTED!not-for-mail
From: Dimensional Traveler <dtravel@sonic.net>
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action
Subject: Re: Too many computers...
Date: Sun, 19 Jan 2025 10:56:28 -0800
Organization: A noiseless patient Spider
Lines: 57
Message-ID: <vmjhsr$2e6rj$1@dont-email.me>
References: <r45qoj5lggc4s80naf2erlhqf7a16d34ni@4ax.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Injection-Date: Sun, 19 Jan 2025 19:56:28 +0100 (CET)
Injection-Info: dont-email.me; posting-host="4bbb1cf6cf335cd9fcbe9e6aac235f66";
	logging-data="2562931"; mail-complaints-to="abuse@eternal-september.org";	posting-account="U2FsdGVkX18RaTdv6dSUymM37fwHb2ex"
User-Agent: Mozilla Thunderbird
Cancel-Lock: sha1:t8MYkPVvHUnDGM4JSp9gXKb6ki0=
Content-Language: en-US
In-Reply-To: <r45qoj5lggc4s80naf2erlhqf7a16d34ni@4ax.com>
Bytes: 4176

On 1/19/2025 7:23 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
> 
> Once a year (at least) I go through my collection of old PCs (and
> other devices), fire them up, make sure they're still running, update
> software as necessary (or possible. There's not a lot you can do with
> a Win95 machine with regards to updates these days ;-) and generally
> make sure my collection of obsolete junk isn't actually, irredeemably
> junk. It's time consuming and repetitive but (for certain types of
> strange personalities, at least) fun work.
> 
> A lot of my older PCs, I don't really have much use for; I keep them
> around for the nostalgic joy they bring me. That old 1997 IBM Lenovo
> laptop is never going to be my main computer, but it's fun to use and
> is surprisingly responsive. Less so that ancient Dell Inspiron, that I
> keep around mostly because it is the sole archive of my ancient iTunes
> library that I'm too lazy to transfer.
> 
> Still, it occurs to me that maybe its time to cull the herd. But its
> so hard to choose which computer gets sent to the slaughter-house
> (a.k.a., the parts bin). Not my cube-like i5-4670 desktop; I love its
> chassis and hot-swappable hard-drives too much. The MacBook 3? No,
> that's (nominally) just a loaner given to me so not really mine to
> scrap (Admittedly, it was loaned to me ten years ago and I'm pretty
> sure the owner has forgotten all about it, but still). The old Gateway
> desktop? But how could I? That's the back-up to my back-up server!
> 
> Well, surely I could get rid of some of the mobile devices. That Palm
> Pilot with the screen that doesn't respond to touch; that can go,
> right? Oh, but I have such fond memories of using it as my MP3 player
> and it takes up almost no room in the closet; keeping it would make
> almost no difference. Maybe my first cell-phone... except it's a
> flip-phone Motorola; they don't make the like anymore! It's
> practically a historical artifact at this point!
> 
> Well, those Tzumi Bluetooth headphones can definitely go. The battery
> is dead, they never were comfortable, I've no use for bluephone
> headphones anyway, and I've no nostalgic feeling whatsoever for the
> device. It's just a shame they're buried so deep in storage. I'd
> literally have to move furniture just to open the drawers where
> they're stored. It all feels like too much effort.
> 
> Hmmm. This old plastic screw I just found at the bottom of the parts
> bin is broken, and I don't know what it goes to anyway. I'll toss
> that. Yeah. That's a good start. But for now, I'd better just put
> everything away so it doesn't look all messy. You know, just until I'm
> ready to really start getting rid of stuff. Tomorrow, maybe. Or next
> week. Next month surely. Definitely by next January, when I have to
> check all the PCs again. But it'll happen; count on it.
> 
> In the meantime, maybe I should get rid of some of my computer games?
> ;-)
> 
Aren't some of those games the reason for keeping some of the old computers?

-- 
I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky 
dirty old man.