Ebay horror ...

From: Richard Erlacher <edick_at_idcomm.com>
Date: Mon Jun 11 12:51:45 2001

You're probably right, but one must keep in mind that you can't have it both
ways. If the collection is for "collectors" (who couldn't give a rat's ***
whether they work or not) then the eBay route is your just and proper domain.

I don't "collect" per se, but do like to run my old '70's and '80's stuff and
keep some non-functional items around, not because of their value but because
they have parts I might need to repair the old boxes I use from time to time,
for tasks like programming 2708's, etc.

My own inclination is to view computers that don't run as projects or as
parts-supply, and computers without reusable parts as dumpster-bound. I'd never
want a machine that requires power I can't supply. I'd never want a machine
that I can't see how to fix, either. Once it's relegated to the parts bins, it
gets dismantled and put in the parts stock, right down to the screws and
washers, and the sheet metal goes to the scrapper or to the dumpster.

My view of old, and particularly old LARGE, hardware sitting in the yard is just
lie my view of old cars rusting in the yard. I know not everybody agrees, but
that's my take. Quite frankly, I have plenty enough trouble keeping the
potentially useable/runable hardware accomodated without keeping lots of
SUN/HP/DEC/etc hardware, any amount of which I've passed up in the past,
accumulating in the yard. My own goal is simply to get the stuff I've held onto
for twenty or more years going, and to reduce the excess to useable replacement
parts or ditch them. Now, I've no problem with giving extra stuff away,
particularly to someone who might acutally use the stuff, and have even given
away stuff for which I paid good money in the not too distant past, just to
lighten the load.

Nevertheless, if I can't see a way to make it into a running machine or parts
for one, it's outta here.

Dick

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jeff Hellige" <jhellige_at_earthlink.net>
To: <classiccmp_at_classiccmp.org>
Sent: Monday, June 11, 2001 10:57 AM
Subject: Re: Ebay horror ...


> >There are some folks who think dead computers are of value for something
other
> >than parts, but I don't know very many. Give the sensible ones a break, will
> >you?
>
> I'm not saying that the PCjr falls into this category, but there are any
> number of systems that even if they're not working should be kept intact and
> not junked or canibalized for whatever useful parts you can get. This
> mainly applies to those machines that a collector is happy to find in any
> condition due to their rarity.
>
> Jeff
>
>
Received on Mon Jun 11 2001 - 12:51:45 BST