Hard Light Productions Forums
Off-Topic Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: Unknown Target on July 24, 2007, 09:41:10 pm
-
My dad has recently commissioned me to clean out his computer store attic, and up there he's got about 10 or 12 early 90s (Intel 286-486) PCs, lots of old monitors, printers, etc, all from the early 90s with serial cables and what not. Does anyone have any ideas for a good project or something neat to do with all that excess "junk"?
-
Sell them?Or maybe make a Robot out of it?
-
you could try setting up a distributed computing environment, dont ask how.
-
Make a weapon? ;)
-
modern art!
-
render farm? yeah right.
-
Sell the CPUs to Nasa! :D
-
Bury them, deep.
-
I know how you can make robots out of computers....... :nervous:
-
Go buy some fireworks or gunpowder or whatever, and blow them to kingdom come.
-
Hmm, if you're not going to use them, see how fast they will overclock with modern cooling equipment & still be stable. ;7
-
you could try setting up a distributed computing environment
I'd do that.
Then you can use is as a parallel processing codebreaker. :nervous:
-
when you say intel 468, is that in mhz? or just the chipset?
-
The chipset (and it's 486) :)
-
Throw them at people you dont like
-
Get them in working order and sell them as retro-gaming machines on ebay.
-
I have a p2 450mhz. I am using it right now.
-
i have a p3 450 too
as it came from an office i wasnt expecting much but it came with a voodoo3 and a aureal vortex 2 sound card
was i a happy bunny...
-
I have a bunch of old computer parts... some work, some don't, I'm going to have to sort through them sooner....... or later. :nervous: MS Virtual PC has kinda spoiled me...
-
when you say intel 468, is that in mhz? or just the chipset?
bloody noobs
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_80486
:D
-
Damn I feel old
-
Yeah, I kinda laughed at that one, too. :D What's really fun is that the 8086 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_8086), released in '78, is > than the 8088 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_8088), released in '79. Hmm... I didn't know that they made the 80186, though... prolly cause it wasn't used in many PCs. I only knew of the 8086, 8088, then straight to the 80286...
-
the 8088 was an economy version. sorta like the celeron of the day. ive used an 8086. i remember it took almost a minute to test what i think iirc was 512k of memory. but it could play elite in line mode with 1 bit color :D
-
IIRC, the 8088 was released because alot of ppl didn't see the need for 16-bit something or another, and so the 8088 was 8-bit externally or somesuch.
-
i think it was rather that 16 bit was prohibitively expensive at the time. the expense wasnt really worth the gain and most of the softweare at the time was 8 bit anyway. similar to the 32bit vs 64bit debate of today. 64 bit is clearly the way of the furture, but noone wants to give up their 16 bit nostalgia for it :D and it doesnt help much that a whole lot of 32 bit software use 16 bit installers. :mad:
-
Well, if they'd make it so that 64 bit can emulate 16 bit then it wouldn't be a problem... :doubt:
-
HAHAHA.. This is great. I remember using my 386, then my 486, then the P166. Wow. I feel old.
I wonder what my son will be playing with in the future.
-
Probably something very simple.. with just an interface to the web and to the user :)
Upgrading your "system" would then mean just buying more resources from the ISP (or whatever). There would be no need to update hardware ever, except when new human<->net interfacing methods are developed.
Hmm... wouldn't mind getting rid of these dust collecting boxes and wires.. and the noise...
-
pah. I played Wolfenstein 3D out of DOS in my old 286, alongside Family Feud. I used Windows 3.0 with my keyboard. I got a mouse as a birthday present, it made my day.
You young'ns are spoiled these days. :p
*goes off to cradle his copy of Carmen Sandiego on 5 1/4" floppy*
-
*demands copy of said sandiego* :lol: j/k, I have my sources... ;7
-
you can not beat line drawn elite on a black and amber screen though :D
-
I loved Carmen San Diego, hehe...
-
Funny thing is, I used to write machine code on the Z80, which was the 8-Bit processor used in Spectrums etc, which had an assembly language very similar to the old 8086/8's :)
I also used to program 6502, and that's really not a pastime for the impatient ;) Basically, imagine a language that not only was limited to about 50 instructions, but worked ONLY through indirect referencing, like C++ where you can ONLY use pointers.
-
Well, I know what I did with one of them...:D
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/IMG_3343.jpg)
-
Well, I know what I did with one of them...:D
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/IMG_3343.jpg)
Use lvlshot, darn it!!
EDIT: BTW, that's a laptop with USB ports... Early 90's, my granny.
-
Well it was one of the ones lying around. And lvlshot? It's only 800 x 600. Doesn't break the forum formatting at all.
And damn, you could tell it had USB ports? Guess I didn't do a good enough job destroying it, hehe....
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/UnknownTarget/IMG_3349.jpg)
-
If you've got any working laptops left, can you throw them in a box & ship them to me? I don't have one. :( :lol: Well, actually, if they work and you're just going to rip them up, I'll pay you shipping... er, please? :D
-
I always get a stockpile of computer **** every year. Last year it was p3 machines and i put them together and sold 6 complete computers. This year i'm getting over run with a lot of p4 equipment and processors.
What i'd say is build them into computers and see if you need a file server, or any other kind of server for that matter. Or if you need a **** computer for extreme backup purposes (my dad's old pentium 120 lasted me until 2002 for a backup machine, it was a little slow, but good for everything except games).
But, you could always do what i do with hardware. Of course i do this for old hardware and malfunctioning hardware, and that is to chuck it in the forest. Most of the time i'll find a 20gb hard drive that'd be great for someones machine or my own backup, but chances are i find out quickly why the hard drive was free as my bios wont detect it. So, what i do as not to confuse somebody else with something tempting that wastes their time. I chucked that 20gb fried hard drive deep into the alaskan forests for no one to be fooled by it ever again. I also chuck obsolete hardware into the forest. And yes, have fun with this old **** of yours. Most of my other stuff went to the top of the local water tower and said hi to 100ft drop, and a nine iron as well.
EDIT: Slow down skippy on destroying the laptops. That thing has an xp sticker on it which means two things. It's powerful enough to run xp so you could probably sell that laptop for some good mulah with a legitimate copy of xp included in the price. Secondly, at least make sure to keep the xp cd, up here where i am, there not so easy to come by, and then you can at least sell xp for a good 75$. Damn, i wish i could get a free laptop.
-
Damn, i wish i could get a free laptop.
My thoughts exactly. And two of my brothers' and my sister's thoughts... I thought UT meant like 133 MHz machines.
EDIT: Still good pix, though... ;) Make sure to point your potential employers to this thread if you're ever looking for a job with tech support. :wakka:
-
if you got any 256s or 512s of pc100 laptop memory, send it my way. i got some ddr laptop mem but nothing compatable to use it on. also you do know that you can get relatively inexpensive adapters to connect laptop drives to a normal desktop pc. i got one desktop computer running nothing but laptop drives.
-
I have some of said adapters, they are cool. Oh, and those things on top of the processor with tubes? That end in a miniature radiator? Those are called heat pipes or somesuch, they're quite nifty.
-
i just recently sold 640mb of ddr from a laptop. It was from an old dell from 2003. The first laptop i ever got to own as a graduation present. And from the moment i got to look at its configuration, i knew it was a piece of ****. Celeron 2ghz is fine, but the 256mb of ddr it only had, and 20gb hard drive, sprayed **** on my dreams for owning a laptop. Hell, my ****ing desktop was only 1ghz, but it was way faster than the budget 500$ laptop my parents got me and way cheaper. It went on a missionary trip with me where all my friends used it more than my occasional checking my email. And it was a slow experience with the 256mb of ddr, and not much to store on the 20gb hard drive either. Then i traded it to my dad if he would buy me a ****ing desktop, oh man that desktop was so much better. Well that dell recently died, i popped its desktop 1.7ghz celeron from it into another machine and got it to go 2.6ghz, and barely sold its memory. At least sometimes with laptops with how ****ty they are, SALVAGE WHAT LITTLE HARDWARE THEY HAVE!!!
-
I always get a stockpile of computer **** every year. Last year it was p3 machines and i put them together and sold 6 complete computers. This year i'm getting over run with a lot of p4 equipment and processors.
What i'd say is build them into computers and see if you need a file server, or any other kind of server for that matter. Or if you need a **** computer for extreme backup purposes (my dad's old pentium 120 lasted me until 2002 for a backup machine, it was a little slow, but good for everything except games).
But, you could always do what i do with hardware. Of course i do this for old hardware and malfunctioning hardware, and that is to chuck it in the forest. Most of the time i'll find a 20gb hard drive that'd be great for someones machine or my own backup, but chances are i find out quickly why the hard drive was free as my bios wont detect it. So, what i do as not to confuse somebody else with something tempting that wastes their time. I chucked that 20gb fried hard drive deep into the alaskan forests for no one to be fooled by it ever again. I also chuck obsolete hardware into the forest. And yes, have fun with this old **** of yours. Most of my other stuff went to the top of the local water tower and said hi to 100ft drop, and a nine iron as well.
EDIT: Slow down skippy on destroying the laptops. That thing has an xp sticker on it which means two things. It's powerful enough to run xp so you could probably sell that laptop for some good mulah with a legitimate copy of xp included in the price. Secondly, at least make sure to keep the xp cd, up here where i am, there not so easy to come by, and then you can at least sell xp for a good 75$. Damn, i wish i could get a free laptop.
I got the laptop for free from someone who gave me another laptop of the same type - so no XP CD, and the key for this laptop was lost. Both didn't work, but she said if I could fix them, I could have them. Thing is, this little guy's keyboard socket was fried, so i couldn't use laptop keyboards. On top of that, later the monitor died, and without a laptop keyboard, I couldn't plug it into a different monitor because I had no switch monitor key. I did save the RAM and HD though :D
-
'atta boy. :)
-
theres a good possibility your cpu still works, that is if you can seporate it from its cooling unit. they usually paste em on.
-
theres a good possibility your cpu still works, that is if you can seporate it from its cooling unit. they usually paste em on.
I remember once upon a time you didn't need a cooling unit for a CPU.......
-
you needed a heat sink, which is technically a passive cooler. though im sure some older cpus didnt need them. computers have always needed some form of cooling, which used to be provided by a single ultra silent fan (in the psu).
-
prolly 8086s didn't need heatsinks... not sure, though. The thing to miss about passive heatsinks is their quietness.
-
I remember processors all the way up to the 486. The 486 was like the first processor i saw that had a heatsink on it in the least, i'm sure the 100mhz 486 had a fan also.
-
If they used bigger heatsinks, would that be a solution to the noisy fan problem?
Or do the CPUs now days just get too hot?
-
If they used bigger heatsinks, would that be a solution to the noisy fan problem?
Or do the CPUs now days just get too hot?
well yeah thatd be a solution... If youre heatsink was THIS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835154001
-
If they used bigger heatsinks, would that be a solution to the noisy fan problem?
Or do the CPUs now days just get too hot?
Slot-1 Pentium II 233 Mhz, there are some versions that don't have a fan. I have one lying around if you want me to post a pic.
-
If they used bigger heatsinks, would that be a solution to the noisy fan problem?
Sure, but then your PC could look like this
(http://www.topsalon.ru/img/mark-levinson-no.33h-mono-amplifier-(150-watts-x-1).jpeg)
(probably not cost as much though :D ).
-
i dont think 386es had heat sinks. i remember seeing them in an alluminum plated die to help dissipate a heat. such a heat spreader is still technically a sink, because it increases the surface area for better heat disipation.
anyway somone posted this mod (http://inventgeek.com/Projects/IonCooler/Overview.aspx) awhile back. a somewhat modern computer with zero moving parts.
-
If they used bigger heatsinks, would that be a solution to the noisy fan problem?
Sure, but then your PC could look like this
(http://www.topsalon.ru/img/mark-levinson-no.33h-mono-amplifier-(150-watts-x-1).jpeg)
(probably not cost as much though :D ).
I actually like the look of those PC's :)
-
Yea, I' d verymuch like a couple too :)
But in actuality they are audio power amplifiers ($33,000/pair). (http://www.stereophile.com/solidpoweramps/115/)
-
If they used bigger heatsinks, would that be a solution to the noisy fan problem?
Sure, but then your PC could look like this
(http://www.topsalon.ru/img/mark-levinson-no.33h-mono-amplifier-(150-watts-x-1).jpeg)
(probably not cost as much though :D ).
I actually like the look of those PC's :)
You have fun trying to put a floppy, cd, or dvd inside that thing then :lol:
-
Hmm. Esp. floppy, hard, zip, or any other magnetically based media... :drevil:
-
removeable media is for loosers
runs... :D
-
Hmm. Not HDD-based removable media. :p
-
real men use a wireless remote storage server
speking of which id like to put that wd mybook drive i got free with the free laptop on the network. i saw a usb print and file server somewhere, get that then i can make this printer work with all the computers and have a 160 gig backup drive. only problem is id need to find 3 outlets for the stuff cluster. i think i used them all :D
state surplus has got some older laptops stuff in the 100-400 mhz range, they dont have cd drives, or batteries, but if somehow i could get windows 2000 server on it and run a little domain controler, that would be cool. it would probibly be cheaper than that print server.
-
:p
Drool on this, Nuke. ;)
http://www.physorg.com/news785.html Old, but hopefully proceeding...