I use batocera linux in my old desktop for a very capable retro-games machine. It's a little bulkier than the tipical Raspberry Pi + retropie installation, but beats it's performance and comes for free.
Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
31–40 of 264 posts
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#32I'm in the process of turning my Toshiba Libretto 110CT (a subnotebook from 1998) into a simple remote terminal (over ssh) with custom server software to handle emails, rss feeds, chats and so on. It runs under FreeDOS and connects to WiFi by a combination of PCMCIA ethernet adapter + mobile router with built-in battery. I love the form factor and the "oldschool" keyboard, I have regenerated the battery and it's quit…
How are you using Freedos with Wifi?
Wouldn't it be easier to use a modern linux/freebsd kernel with a lightweight userspace?
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#33I use a spare TV like a kiosk panel for the family calendar, weather, and various RSS feeds.
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#34I run boinc (https://boinc.berkeley.edu/) on my old computers, mostly https://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/ to help with climate and health research
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#35I have my old Galaxy S1 sitting in my cellar listening to the beeps from my washing machine. It sends me an email when the wash finishes. (I can't hear the beeps from upstairs.)
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#36Reminded me of using an old Nokia N900 to watch EdX videos offline while commuting. No cellular, just Using WiFi.
Loved this little Nokia because Maemo OS was Linux-based, had a keyboard and terminal.
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
How can it function without a drive?
One way is to burn a CD/DVD live image that has your configs added and configure it to mount a mergefs(iirc) on top of the read-only /home so all writes go to /tmp/merge.
But past that, I don't see how you can do anything since installing programs would require storage.
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#38I don’t know why everyone acts like old laptops aren’t usable, my 2011 MacBook Pro has no HD (the cable died again and I’m not replacing it this time) and it runs from ram just fine (with Linux of course, not OSX) If you’re not silly you really don’t need much computing power, even then newer laptops aren’t big improvements so if your old one still works I don’t see why you would replace it.
My 2012 MacBook Pro is in great condition and probably would’ve stayed that way for awhile, but sluggishness was just becoming too common. Especially when I’m off mains, running an IDE, a browser, and occasionally compiling
I’m still runnin a 2012 (non retina) without any issues, and I plan on keeping it until it literally won’t boot. What’s funny is I was initially annoyed as I got it a few weeks before they announced they were releasing the first Retina display models (discontinuing the non retinas), however getting the last non-retina generation was a blessing because that’s was that was when they also began making upgrading MacBooks nearly impossible (non upgradable ram/and I believe some weird half SSD/half disc drive that didn’t come in >512GB or something like that). So getting the last (upgradable) MacBook Pro was the better deal because two or so years ago I upgraded the RAM to 32GB and because it was also the last MacBook to have a CD drive (that I never used) I was able to rip it out, put a $5 hardrive bracket in it’s place and threw the original (I think) 750GB or whatever HDD where the CD drive used to go, and popped in a nice 1TB SSD into the main disc drive, and nowadays it’s almost always plugged into a monitor so I wouldn’t really even be using the retina anyway.
Sadly though, I think I got the last generation of great MacBooks, and as much as I love it I fear for the day it finally dies, because I’m probably not getting another MacBook unless something changes, and there still isn’t a laptop out there that comes close to the good MacBooks (I know good one’s exist and I’ll manage, but they’re still not the same)
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#39You can contribute to the effort to port https://postmarketos.org/ to old phones and help unify hardware support in the mainline kernel.
Re: Ask HN: What are some interesting projects to reuse your old devices?
#40I'm in the process of turning my Toshiba Libretto 110CT (a subnotebook from 1998) into a simple remote terminal (over ssh) with custom server software to handle emails, rss feeds, chats and so on. It runs under FreeDOS and connects to WiFi by a combination of PCMCIA ethernet adapter + mobile router with built-in battery. I love the form factor and the "oldschool" keyboard, I have regenerated the battery and it's quit…
Have you any info about how you regenerated the battery?