Frugal Propellerhead's Technological "Boneyard" Part 1

 

I've decided that, unlike others; I'm not really a collector. I don't really have a collection. It's more like the U.S. Air Force's boneyard, or the Navy's "mothball fleet". Much of what I have are either the actual items that I had and used, or a specimen that I picked up later so I can kind of commemorate the original. What am I talking about and what started me down this dusty trail?

Ikea's ubiquitous "Lack" floating wall-shelves. They range from $10 to $20 depending on length and are so common, there's a whole sub-culture built around "hacks" people do with them. Me? I just use them to put my old technology stuff on..... along with a few pictures and nic-nacs......, but mostly...... it's old tech. And now that I have a kind-of, sort-of man-cave; I've put up a few of these and have a place to put old tech that mean something to me.

Although, I just generally love technology, I blame becoming infected by the "collection" disease on this.... the IBM ThinkPad 701c. One of these, was my very first laptop and I loved pretty much everything about it. So, a few years ago, I went out and bought one to represent the original that I owned and used for several years before moving on. So, am I a ThinkPad collector? Not quite. Although I'll admit to having several which are for display only, I only have ones that are especially significant to me..... like the 701c. I also have an X20 (complete with X2 Ultrabase) and both a 760CD (complete with Dock) as well as an A31p (complete with Dock). The last two, partially because they were used on the Space Shuttle and/or the International Space Station.

 

Oh.... and I like docks too.

I also have the IBM WorkPad C505 which was the pinnacle of 6 different organizers I personally used during the height of the PDA era during the 90's. And there's the ThinkPad Tablet (1st version running Android); my very first tablet. Uh, I have the matching dock as well, and of course the charging cradle for the WorkPad. 

I can definitely claim that I'm not really a true "collector" or I'd have the Palm Pilot Professional and Handspring Edge (both of which I own and used) in my little menagerie. Of course, if you follow that logic, I'd also have the following ThinkPads (600e, 600x, T20, T21p, T22p, T23p, T30, T40, T41p, T42p, T43p, X30, X31, X300, X301, X1, A21, A22, A30, A31, A31p, T430s, T530) in the collection as well. 

..... but...... it's not a collection..... Next time, the other non- collection.

Land of Misfit ThinkPads

Sometimes I feel like the closet in my office is this; where the toys are various old ThinkPads and ThinkPad parts. The other computers...... Dells, HPs, Toshibas.......? Yeah, they get sold off, if they are of the slightest value, given away if anyone at all wants it or thrown out otherwise. In my world, ThinkPads only, are good enough to occupy the precious little crevices under, between and on top of the other stuff!

I also don't mean my small (and I mean that literally, consisting of 3) collection of classic ThinkPads, a 701c, a 765xd, and an X20. No, I mean relatively recent vintage machine.... although, I did dig out a couple of things that will go in the museum; the WorkPad C505/C500 and 1st gen, ThinkPad Android Tablet.

 

I mean more along the lines of these machines.

e.g. at least of the Core/Core 2 Duo generation. These are all usable in some way or have their parts harvested for use. My question becomes: what do I do with these things?

I've so far, been unable to convince the powers-that-be to let me and my machines go up in the International Space Station, although they appear to have enough of them already! 

 Lenovo thinks that something like this would be a good idea. My wife says otherwise.....

I lean towards these sorts of projects, but one can only have so many computer photo-frames and yellow T60s.....

If my imagination/skill-set was better, it might be things like this....

Last year, I did the "turn an A31 system with 2631 Dock in a server" thing using CentOS, but that concept has been proven and I failed to find a practical use for it...... at least in my world. So now what?

I can do that all over again using the now, rather long-in-the-tooth Z61m with the gorgeous titanium lid into a mobile server and since it has a dual core processor, I can even use the languishing MS Windows Home Server 2011 license that I have sitting around. 

I could use either that, or the also sitting under my desk gathering dust cousin, the R500. It's another member of the "Team-Too-Chunky-To-Travel-Well" category! However, the R500 is of the Penyrn generation, and thus newer and more usable for other pursuits.

Then there are the others (no, this isn't my pile.... at least, not yet) that a project isn't so imminent....