I'm also running an older computer. A late 2008 era I7 920 and a Rampage II Gene X58 micro ATX motherboard! The upgrades I have done are 24 GB of memory an SSD and a GeForce GTX 960. It works surprisingly well even today! I have been building a system piece by piece to replace this however, a Ryzen system with a 2080. Just need a few more parts and I'll transition to the new system...
Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
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Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#202By virtue this is nice and noble. But objectively you're likely not doing you a favor.
To answer your question, and to also give you an example: In early 2020 I passed my 2012 Xeon machine down to my SO to replace her 2007 Celeron. Technically, the machine was "good enough" for what I did, but for WFH I needed more RAM if I wanted to avoid VNCing (via VPN) into my office computer to do my work - which really annoyed me. Upgrading 4x4GB DDR3 to 4x8GB DDR3 would have made no economical sense (even used), so I switched to AM4 (MB/CPU/RAM). Because I hate waste I already planned for a future upgrade path (= decent mainboard) and got a really cheap Ryzen 1600 AF (still 50% faster than my old CPU) instead of a more expensive 2800X. Back then I planned to eventually get a 3800 (wasn't released then), now the 5800X or better are an option.
That was for work. The machine is actually my personal computer (work data is encrypted on Linux), so that also does gaming duty (got new GPUs 2007, 2014 and now 2021; old GPUs have been passed down to family/friends). For hobby I still have a 2009 Xeon in the NAS (got it from a friend), which will probably inherit the Ryzen 1600 CPU once I upgrade the desktop.
For the sake of your eyes: Get a decent TFT. Also more screen estate will make you more productive. I usually recommend 2x27" WQHD or 4k for pure work stuff. At home I use 1x34" UWQHD instead (because two screens are not good for gaming).
Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#203You take care of your things. I, unfortunately have a propensity to break stuff. That being said I can't imagine periodically switching to a new device "just because".
> When was the last time you gave something extra life instead of throwing it away?
I replaced parts(fans, batteries) in a few laptops. My previous machine is still waiting for me to replace the power socket and battery - perhaps the screen as well. Unfortunately over those seven years of intensive usage (and one water spill event) it experienced, mechanical failures started to accumulate.
Also I just give stuff away. My mother still uses the laptop I bought in 2010 and passed on in 2013 after a botched screen replacement, which relegated it to the role of a stationary device. My brother in law installed an SSD there, so it's appropriately fast now. Also one external display I had found a new home at my friend's place.
Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#204Almost same is here. Somehow decent desktop was always ~$1k here in Russia. Progress was fast in 90x - I was working as a student to get dx386 and finally assembled 486. Then had some Pentium which eventually got fried by PSU (even mouse died that time).
So I assembled Phenom x4 925 back in 2009, had GTS250 for a long time.
Upgraded slowly some components (like HDD when run out of space), switched to GTX 1060... Still works fine for everything for me.
I could easily upgrade everything but I don't like to spend time moving everything to new system :)
Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#205My home computer (which I also use for smart working) is from 2010, I updated it with a couple of SSDs instead of mechanical hard drives and I added 4GB of ram (totalling 8GB) but it is perfectly capable of my working needs. I only have Linux on this PC (and I only use Linux at work too), so I think this is the main reason it's aging so well. Other colleagues with Windows have various slowness problems, with more recent machines.
Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#206My laptop is from 2016 (Dell inspiron 15), daily use and I expect to spend at least 6 more years with it, no reasons to change, and for the sake of the environment let's consume less
Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#207Give yourself extra life. Buy the best tools you can. Don't let virtues learned by necessity become the vices that suck up your lifetime. You'll never get the time back that you spend working on unimportant projects, sustaining old builds, placating unhappy people, working on slow computers, etc. Unless it's the fastest way for you to deliver whatever good you have to the world, put it aside, especially if you've inv…
I've a different view on this, which comes more and more relevant with pollution and climate changes. It's to consume for things you really need and minimize your environmental footprint
Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#208Give yourself extra life. Buy the best tools you can. Don't let virtues learned by necessity become the vices that suck up your lifetime. You'll never get the time back that you spend working on unimportant projects, sustaining old builds, placating unhappy people, working on slow computers, etc. Unless it's the fastest way for you to deliver whatever good you have to the world, put it aside, especially if you've inv…
Agreed, in that it's not a benefit to hobble yourself with bad tools that hold you back. But... the worthwhile upgrade cycle has become ever longer. Back in the early 90s it always felt that last years CPU was unimaginably slow. But over the last decade and more, there's hardly a convincing reason to upgrade very often other than marketing or perhaps cutting-edge gaming (don't know much about gaming). My primary serv…
Maybe related in case you are charging the macbook from the left side: https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/363337/how-to-find...
Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#209> When was the last time you gave something extra life instead of throwing it away?
Maybe this is uncommon, but I don’t know of anyone throwing old laptops or computers away! They’re still valuable!
Here are a number of things I’ve done with old laptops and phones:
- sold or given it to a family member
- traded it back through a program which likely resells, refurbishes, or recycles it
- turned it into a server
- sold it to someone on Facebook marketplace or Reddit hardwareswap
- sold to a friend who wanted a gaming PC when I was looking for a laptop
In each case, these computers have gotten a second life while I get a sometimes used and sometimes new device. Using a device forever, while perhaps admirable, isn’t the only way to give a computer a new life :)
Indeed, I may very well upgrade to M2, selling my current MacBook to a family member who will use it for their freelance work.
Re: Tell HN: I used the same computer since 2007 (with minor upgrades)
#210Give yourself extra life. Buy the best tools you can. Don't let virtues learned by necessity become the vices that suck up your lifetime. You'll never get the time back that you spend working on unimportant projects, sustaining old builds, placating unhappy people, working on slow computers, etc. Unless it's the fastest way for you to deliver whatever good you have to the world, put it aside, especially if you've inv…
Have you ever lived south of the USA before? Shit gets EXPENSIVE out this way for electronics. I mean I can get my groceries extremely cheap and rent hasn't ever been more than 200$/mo, but electronics are all manufactured out of Asia and the supply lines and/or taxes on specifically that just add all this extra cost that's hard to justify in certain cases. We're talking like 50%+ of the cost you'll find in the USA.…
Why are the import taxes so high?