-----Original Message----- From: owner-classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org [mailto:owner-classiccmp@classiccmp.org]On Behalf Of Sellam Ismail Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2002 3:41 AM To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' Subject: RE: STAPLES STORES WILL TAKE OLD COMPUTERS Here's the scoop on this Staples program. I spoke with a representative from Gifts In Kind this morning. Basically, they collect the computers from Staples and divert them to four regional processing centers across the country. Those processing centers are already-established recycling entities that will then process the computers, separating out the wheat from the chaff. The resulting systems will then be placed by Gifts In Kind. The rest are recycled. Gifts in Kind also handles the computer recycling program for IBM. The rep told me that the last time they did this, they collected about 2000 computers, of which only about 90 met the minimum standards for donating (Pentium 1). This was about a year ago. The rep told me they needed a processing center for the west coast. All the computers from Staples stores in the west will wind up in Los Angeles. I told her about the ACCRC and it looks like she is going to talk to them and make arrangements to have the machines shipped to their facility and use the ACCRC as their west coast processing center. Rest assured that any classic systems that come through from this program will be rescued ;) Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at

I spoke with a representative from Gifts In Kind this morning. Basically, they collect the computers from Staples and divert them to four regional processing centers across the country. Those processing centers are already-established recycling entities that will then process the computers, separating out the wheat from the chaff. The resulting systems will then be placed by Gifts In Kind. The rest are recycled.

Gifts in Kind also handles the computer recycling program for IBM. The rep told me that the last time they did this, they collected about 2000 computers, of which only about 90 met the minimum standards for donating (Pentium 1). This was about a year ago.

The rep told me they needed a processing center for the west coast. All the computers from Staples stores in the west will wind up in Los Angeles. I told her about the ACCRC and it looks like she is going to talk to them and make arrangements to have the machines shipped to their facility and use the ACCRC as their west coast processing center. Rest assured that any classic systems that come through from this program will be rescued ;)

On Thu, 14 Feb 2002, Sellam Ismail wrote: [...] ^^^^^^^^ "Recycled" is a politically correct term for the brutal destruction of useful, interesting and historically meaningful, equipment. Typical of those short-sighted charitable organizations that rely on the destruction of history and useful, well-made, equipment for their own survival. Doesn't this organization also collect cars from people under false pretenses and then have perfectly useable older cars scrapped? I've seen some extremely nice looking, rust-free, apparently well-maintained, older cars (e.g., late 1960's to late 1970's), with good interiors, new tires, etc. sitting in a junkyard with stickers from such charities on their windshields. These are cars that are driveable, that donors thought were going to be put to good use, which are being destroyed by the lame-brained cretins (and that's an extremly kind description of them) at those charities. Alas, such cars are often scrapped, at least in Maryland, within a week's time, so there's not even much time to obtain parts from them. It's my understanding that the titles to such cars are kept by the lame-brained cretins at those charities so that the classic cars can't be put back on the road. Now, these charities are seeking to destroy another rare commodity: older computers for which parts are becoming difficult to find. An idea: perhaps we should begin finding ways to recycle those charities and put an end to the damage they're doing. -- Copyright (C) 2001 R. D. Davis The difference between humans & other

All Rights Reserved an unnatural belief that we're above Nature & rdd(a)rddavis.org 410-744-4900 her other creatures, using dogma to justify

http://www.rddavis.org beliefs and to justify much human cruelty.

I am truely suprised you read this list. Can you not understand that computers that are not useful to _most_ people (read : can't run the latest bloatware and unplayable games) are still very useful and interesting to people on this list.

-tony

Sure... But I noticed the '_good_ software'. Presumably that means you like non-Windows machines :-)

Agreed. I regard technical docs (and not what now passes for 'technical documentation' which generally contains less info than old-time user manuals) as being as least as important as the machines themselves. That's why I have _shelves_ of service manuals, source listings, OS manuals, etc for machines I don't even own yet.

As some of you know, I am one of the few poeple to still be using a _repairable_ PC. Meaning I have schematics, etc for it. And meaning that I know what all the chips really do.

OK, I'll admit I play games. But I've found games for my HP67 (with 224 _bytes_ of program memory) that are more fun to play (at least to me) than most modern PC games. I prefer 'thinking' games over 'blast the b*st*rds'. And there are many of the former for classic computers.

Yep. Which is why _all_ possibly restorable examples of (b) should be saved whenever possible.

-tony

-----Original Message----- From: owner-classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org [mailto:owner-classiccmp@classiccmp.org]On Behalf Of Tony Duell Sent: Saturday, February 16, 2002 20:56 PM To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org Subject: Re: Destructive charities (was: STAPLES STORES...) Oh, don't get me wrong. I wasn't suggesting that all non-Windows software was good... It does what??? Err, in the UK most people still access the internet via a dial-up modem line. It is. Memory is too cheap so people don't bother trying to write good, efficient, small, programs any more :-(. meaning that This PC started out as a true-blue IBM PC/AT. For which I have the official TechRefs. It's been hacked (a lot) -- a 486 kludgeboard in place of the CPU, extra EPROMS added to patch bits of the BIOS, and so on, but it's still fundamentally a PC/AT. And most of the expansion cards use good old TTL chips that I can understand... -tony

On Thu, 14 Feb 2002, Sellam Ismail wrote: [...] ^^^^^^^^ "Recycled" is a politically correct term for the brutal destruction of useful, interesting and historically meaningful, equipment. Typical of those short-sighted charitable organizations that rely on the destruction of history and useful, well-made, equipment for their own survival. Doesn't this organization also collect cars from people under false pretenses and then have perfectly useable older cars scrapped? I've seen some extremely nice looking, rust-free, apparently well-maintained, older cars (e.g., late 1960's to late 1970's), with good interiors, new tires, etc. sitting in a junkyard with stickers from such charities on their windshields. These are cars that are driveable, that donors thought were going to be put to good use, which are being destroyed by the lame-brained cretins (and that's an extremly kind description of them) at those charities. Alas, such cars are often scrapped, at least in Maryland, within a week's time, so there's not even much time to obtain parts from them. It's my understanding that the titles to such cars are kept by the lame-brained cretins at those charities so that the classic cars can't be put back on the road. Now, these charities are seeking to destroy another rare commodity: older computers for which parts are becoming difficult to find. An idea: perhaps we should begin finding ways to recycle those charities and put an end to the damage they're doing. -- Copyright (C) 2001 R. D. Davis The difference between humans & other animals: All Rights Reserved an unnatural belief that we're above Nature & rdd(a)rddavis.org 410-744-4900 her other creatures, using dogma to justify such http://www.rddavis.org beliefs and to justify much human cruelty.