Old iMac G3

Unclutterer ForumsTechnology

(14 posts) (10 voices)

Started 1 year ago by klutzgrrl
Latest reply from trillie
RSS feed for this topic

Overall Rating: votes

Tags:

klutzgrrl
Member

So I've got this old Blueberry all-in-one iMac G3. it's the funkiest thing but with a 300MHZ processor painfully slow, and it makes a rather annoying high-picthed sort of humming/buzzing sound. I think it's the old CRT. I've successfully installed Xubuntu ( a version of Ubuntu Linux) on it - it actually runs, rather well considering its age - but really, do I need it? No.

I'm really struggling with it though - it's a lovely piece of technology and doesn't deserve the scrap heap. Most people would be clueless with Linux and such an old machine. I don't know what to do!

Help me, unclutterers!

Posted 1 year ago #
Zora
Member

Find the nearest coven of techies (local Linux group?) and ask if one of them would want your G3. Someone may be able to use as a server or somesuch.

I got rid of a lot of computer stuff that way.

Posted 1 year ago #
Another Deb
Member

Craigslist? Someone with hearing loss at high pitched frequencies may want it.

Posted 1 year ago #
Brandilynn
Member

I would love it so I'm sure others would as well. Freecycle might be a good bet to gauge any interest if not I'd also try Craigslist or even emailing a local university and their Computer Science department to see if it's of any interest.

Posted 1 year ago #
SteveC
Member

I too have an old iMac g3, very similar. I'm afraid it's going to the tip (aka recycling centre) when I finally get rid of it. It's just too old and unreliable and I suspect yours will be the same.
The G4 laptop on the other hand will be going to a new home. Some people we know _refuse_ to spend any money on computers, and giving them this one will stop them asking me for support on their even more antiquated machines!

S

Posted 1 year ago #
susanintexas
Member

I'd at least give it a short go at freecycle or craigslist. I recently freecycled 2 computers that I though were doomed to the crusher. The laptop was needed by a disabled woman who had the same model and just needed the hinges, as the ones attaching her screen to the body had broken. The desktop went to a man who was just looking for a power supply. Both were very grateful.

Posted 1 year ago #
klutzgrrl
Member

Thanks guys. Yeah, I mean really, I don't want to trust it with any real work, do I? Especially with summer arriving, if it overheats in the middle of a brilliant chapter. I'll try to pass it on. At least, now it has a functioning operating system, it has a chance of being useable. Or maybe someone will hack a netbook into the housing, I've seen an instructable on how to do it.

Posted 1 year ago #
Anita
Member

Thanks for this thread, klutzgrrl! It's convinced me to replace my laptop ;)

I have a 6+ year old laptop that, with regular maintenance, works very well for basic usage like web browsing, word processing, running any Office application, and even some more complex tasks, but it's becoming woefully inadequate for my needs, as I do a lot of image editing and need something more powerful.

I've been putting off getting a new laptop because "this one still works" even if it does frustrate me when it takes ages to render some of my images and the 40GB hard drive needs to be cleaned out every 2-3 weeks. But this thread has me thinking: if I replace my laptop now, the old one can still work for someone with less demanding computing needs, and can probably live on for several more years that way, while I'll be much happier and more productive with a new laptop. If I wait, I'll save myself the expense now, but drag on my frustrations for a few more months, while my current computer becomes more and more obsolete, and might not be of much use to anyone by the time I pass it on.

Posted 1 year ago #
klutzgrrl
Member

40g! yes time for a new laptop! I'm hearin' ya on the rendering time. My view on technology, currently, is to buy something comfortably within the budget, not the bleeding-edge (to avoid major compatibility issues and first-release glitches), and to accept that it will be obsolete in around three years. It's not a chair that I expect to last a lifetime: it's effectively a consumeable.

I built a desktop as I wanted more computing power than was then available in a laptop for my price, which allows me to upgrade a bit at a time. (just replacing motherboard and processor for a few hundred, rather than having to find a few thousand for a high end laptop).

I've been wanting a netbook for ages, but kept hoping the price and specs would improve, but really the newer models aren't that different... should have just bought one and had the use of it!

And what a good idea to pass yours on while its still useful to someone.

Posted 1 year ago #
Claycat
Member

Klutzgrrl, I gave my old iMac to a local Mac repair shop. They said if they didn't use it for parts, they would recycle it.

Posted 1 year ago #
Claycat
Member

Netbook? Is that Dell? I wouldn't buy a Dell. My MIL had one. It was terrible trouble, always asking her to load stuff. She always had spyware in spite of the security. Constant problems. I know Macs are expensive, but I won't ever use anything else.

Posted 1 year ago #
pkilmain
Member

Ah,to each his own. My Dell has never given me a moment's trouble.... :)

Posted 1 year ago #
klutzgrrl
Member

oh here in Oz 'Netbook' is any small low-power laptop up to about 10 or 11 inch screen. I'm not a Dell fan either. A friend had huge problems with their financial department.

Posted 1 year ago #
trillie
Member

Oooh, this brings back memories of my first own computer, a Tangerine iMac G3. I absolutely LOVED it. I passed it on to my cousin when I got a new one, so no idea what she did with it in the end... I always liked the idea of making an aquarium out of one of these old TVs with wood veneer, but I'd also take a repurposed iMac aquarium or terrarium too :o)

Realistically though (and assuming you don't want fish or a lizard or other pets), have you simply tried listing it on Craigslist or something similar to see if there are people who are interested?

Posted 1 year ago #

Reply

You must log in to post. If you do not already have an account, you can register here.