Recently, I made a trade with someone for a stack of older laptops. I was head over heels about the idea of getting these machines for essentially nothing...or at least stuff I wasn't using anyway. I started the process to see what each of these machines needed to get up and running. Their ages varied from a 7 years old to nearly two decades. As I dealt with the headaches that came with picking through each of these machines, I realized that I was wasting my time. Even if I got them working again, nobody would be interested in buying them. I also would seldom use them as my daily computer because my main machine is superior to each and every one of them.
I admire the people who fix up devices and keeping them as part of a collection. I could not do the same thing. After struggling laptops that were well past their prime, I doubt that I could do such a thing again. The only way that it would be remotely interesting is if I acquired them for next to nothing like I did with these ones. If I had to invest money into purchasing laptops, I would not want to put money into repairing them. The overall costs of these projects would be hard to justify. Plus, I want to move forward in the world of technology, not backward. My main machine is being kept together with duct tape. I don't want to switch to one that's older and in worse condition.
I have nothing against older devices. In fact, I probably like them more than most. They have to be working though. The value of a device plummets the moment that it leaves the store and goes down even further when it's opened. If you end up using that device for any length of time, it becomes worthless to anyone other than you. The annual cycle of yearly revisions of products coming out has killed the second hand market. People don't want to buy something that could be nearing the end of its prime when they could go to the store and get a glossy gadget fresh out of the box.
I did find one machine that worked and was in remarkably good condition. All it needed was a keyboard and battery. I've turned it into my word processor and I'm kind of fond of it. I still kept a couple of the other machines because they just need minor repairs. The parts that they need are rare and fixing them would not be cost effective; however, the machines themselves are interesting enough to warrant me spending money. I like the gadgets that people think are too weird or never get the attention they deserve. That only makes them want me more. Someone worked hard to realize their vision and release the gadget. It's only right that someone takes it for a test drive.
I used to be reluctant to get rid of gadgets. I felt like I had to hang onto them because I might need or use them at some undefined point in the future. I abandoned this idea when I realized that devices start to deteriorate even if you never lay a hand on them again and keep them in the same place. If you're going to fix up a device and use it, do it now. You might be faced with a project that's much more intense than you previously anticipated if you pick it up later. Sometimes you have to know when you have done enough and it's okay to throw in the towel.
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