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dohtem
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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You know how the Engineering dept at my old college used to recycle? They would leave all their old dusty computer equipment out by the side of the building and pretend to look away.

Of course, the nerdy students came and picked up all this free legacy equipment (hello new pron server!) for their hobbies.

It wasn't till later I figured out they were too cheap to dispose of it properly.

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frodoUnderhill
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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Recycle electronics... what is that? I'm married to a computer engineer so all of our old electronics are in the spare bedroom. My last count was 3 computers, 1 monitor and a drawer full of old cell phones, mp3 players and maybe even a CD player.

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gStein_*|bringing starpipe back|*
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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@frodoUnderhill: i am like this.
my dad is not.
i got an old laptop from a friend, but it didn't have a wireless card - i went to get my dad's old PCMCIA wireless a/b card, and he'd thrown it out because he \"didn't need it any more\"

i, on the other hand, still have a USB floppy drive that i bought from some guy at the beginning of high school senior year (2004) for $5... and haven't used it since i graduated.

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samurailynn
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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@frodoUnderhill: And the parts! We have so many sticks of RAM we could probably start building things from them.

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chucklebuck
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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I've been looking for a good place to donate some old but usable computer equipment I have lying around, and I came across a great place to do just that this morning. I donated a G4 Powerbook I wasn't using anymore to the National Cristina Foundation, which gives computer equipment to non-profits that provide training opportunities for disabled and disadvantaged children all over the country. Seems like a much better thing to do with usable computers than let them sit or just trash them.

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Paladin_11
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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In my county you have to pay to recycle electronic waste. I've done this with computers because it's the right thing to do. But I would certainly do it more if it didn't cost so much. I have a closet full of old crap that I'd like to dispose of at some point.

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delicatedisarray
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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When we bought our new tv, months ago now, we took our old dead one to Best Buy for their program. You pay $10, they haul the thing off and give you a $10 gift card. I wish more companies advertised programs like these- I had to look around to find it. I just didn't feel right leaving the old heap of junk of the side of the road for the city bulk pickup gusy to have to deal with.

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HogwartsAlum
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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There's a place here that recycles computers. I think you have to pay a fee to dispose of the monitor, but the whole place is dedicated to stripping and recycling them. It's awesome.

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subtlefrog
November 18, 2009 4:53 PM
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Los Angeles county does recycling of electronics for free: [ladpw.org]

But if things still work, consider wiping hard drives or SIM card and donating to charities, like women's shelters, Goodwill, etc. Many of these places can use them to help people get back on their feet.

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