With the march of technology speeding faster every day, there is a simple thing you can choose to do to avoid adding to all of the toxic landfill waste, that computers are starting to make a large percentage of. Electronics now make up 70 percent of the toxic materials going to landfills. Something like 4.6 million tons of electronic waste went into landfills in 2000. How about upgrading your current machine, costs a lot less than a new computer and generates very little waste. Or, instead of buying a new machine, why not buy a factory refurbished machine or an overstock machine that is essentially brand new in the box.
There are great sources for computers and affordable parts for upgrading. 3BTech, is one source I've found for finding parts at good prices, and all of their prices include shipping so you know what you are paying up front, and don't get the shipping cost "surprise" at the end of your checkout process. PC Parts Unlimited is another great place to get desktops, laptops, and parts and accessories. They are a Gateway surplus outlet. Did you know that many companies buy hundreds or even thousands of computers for their businesses on a lease program ? When the lease is up and they want to upgrade, they send all of their computers back and get new ones to replace them. PC Parts buys these machines from Gateway and refurbishes them and gives them new life. They might be a couple of years old, but they run great and can be upgraded in many ways. As an added bonus, you can get machines with Operating Systems already installed, or if you're a Linux/Open Source Software kind of geek like me, you can even get machines with no Operating System, so you can install whatever OS you want. Did I mention that you can save a ton of money buying a computer this way ? I've bought several machines from them, for us and family members. Instead of adding to the pile of trash in the landfills, we've been able to benefit in more ways than one ($$$$) by using these invaluable resources.
This post was made by John, Lisa's computer geek husband. She cannot be held responsible for any techno babble in the preceding post. Cheers, John
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Computer trash is such a huge problem! Sometimes I think *everyone* I know is trying to get rid of an old, beat-up monitor. :P I think the upgrading idea is a great one - it's so much less expensive when you can just upgrade your new machine. When our machines get too decrepit and old to upgrade, my geeky husband brings them to a computer recycling facility. I've heard they're still hard to find, but it's getting easier and easier to recycle computers, thank goodness!
ReplyDeleteGreat interview!
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