justapeon

Bought: Replacement cheapo video cam for the one I had that died. Portable dvd player with composite input that i could also use as a backup tv via a dtv converter. Digital tuner card for my mythtv box. Heat gun for extracting electronics parts. lots of electronic parts.

Feel like a kid again with all the new puter toys. First computer: ibm 360 model 40. Current computers: a plethora of single core (intel/amd/etc) obsolete systems being used for a variety of projects. Used more operating systems than most people, but I prefer 'nix based systems. Worked non-management positions in computing for umpteen years including more than 10 years as a mswindows admin. Have a sheepskin for a non-computing degree but have about 50 college hours in extinct computing. Could care less about certifications. Just give me a manual and I will take to it like a duck to water. But then who needs to rtm. Still have lots to learn as things change so fast. Love to re-purpose, especially computers and related equipment. Love to make diy gadgets. Lost my better half, but still have the most special daughter in the whole world. Some buddies and I are planning to restart our old band from years ago. etc etc...

I have no skills what so ever, but I do know how too cut and paste......

Will do. There are a zillion sites with details and videos on how to do it. It is a shame how much people discard that can be reused.

We are pretty much on a $0 computer budget right now, but we have lots of old computers. Thanx to the people who are coming out with linux for older hardware, we are still continuing to reuse what we have. ar430w(with web server) + hp jet direct = home automation controller. P1 (plus mirror and glass) has become a tele-prompter. p3 + old wifi router are becoming a wifi robot. (stepper motors from old 5 1/4 inch drives will power it and do the steering.) i486 laptop is used to fire air cannons and air bottle rockets. Pt/p2's used to control Halloween and holiday animations I have a p2 that is used as a web server for web pages we create and as a mt-daapd music server. It also hold files when we are moving data from one computer too another. Someone just gave me an old dryer. I will probably pull the motor and use wire to build a vawt (wind generator) to power the computers. Plan to turn the backyard into an earth battery to power things also. I am just an amateur at all this and have no engineering experience at all, but the internet is a wonderful place to do research.