Sites for buying dinosaur computers?

[Beanis64]

Hello, I was just wondering if anyone had a favorite and reliable site for buying dinosaur systems where a high price would be around $100. I just plan on doing a little tinkering to better understand computers to help my in my quest for knowledge, and I don't want to mess up the computer I am using now while I am at it.

[gehidore]

check surpluscomputers.com

[Beanis64]

Thanks, that site looks like it might be able to fulfill my needs.

[sandboy6184]

www.retrobox.com is the shiznit! :D

[Sepero]

Ebay (www.ebay.com)?

I got a system with these specs in Dec of last year:
750Mhz AMD
40Gb HD
~390 Mb Ram
Dvd drive
Nvidia Graphics Card
Optical mouse
and a Micro$oft Pro CD (this alone costs about $200)

I got all of this for $200

[Beanis64]

I have found a computer that I want to order from there. Before I order, I was just wondering if you had any personal experience with this company. If you have, are they reliable?

[gehidore]

who? which company?

[Beanis64]

I was referring to sandboy, as stated in the subject.

[JohnT]

If you live in the US and close to a major metropolitan area check out the Goodwill Stores....some larger areas have their own electronics/computer outlet. Cheap, Cheap,Cheap,Cheap.:D

[Beanis64]

Really John T? I always thought that Goodwill only had clothing and things similar to that. Learn something new everyday.

[JohnT]

Originally posted by Beanis64
Really John T? I always thought that Goodwill only had clothing and things similar to that. Learn something new everyday. It's not well known....I found out from someone in a class I took one time. I've seen truckloads of PC's, Mac's, from schools that are upgrading, business that are upgrading...they get a tax write-off.

[merclude]

stay on the lookout during trash days too, its amazing what people will throw out...my buddy pulled a fully working p200 out of the dumpster a while ago..

[TheSpeedoBeast]

Man, you really know that you are a computer geek when you are rooting through dumpsters for old p200's :)

[JohnT]

Originally posted by TheSpeedoBeast
Man, you really know that you are a computer geek when you are rooting through dumpsters for old p200's :) He,he...just let me catch a glimpse of biege plastic out of the corner of my eye when throwing out the trash.:D

[psi42]

Originally posted by JohnT
If you live in the US and close to a major metropolitan area check out the Goodwill Stores....some larger areas have their own electronics/computer outlet. Cheap, Cheap,Cheap,Cheap.:D

I've never seen Goodwill vending a computer, but I have noticed a ton in other similar stores. The problem is they will mark both a 486 and a P200 as 141.95............

[JohnT]

Originally posted by psi42
I've never seen Goodwill vending a computer, but I have noticed a ton in other similar stores. The problem is they will mark both a 486 and a P200 as 141.95............ No these stores are different....the one I frequent has tech staff the works there tearing down and selling. No non-savvy personell. These stores will haggle over the price if you seem interested. Never pay sticker.

[Beanis64]

It makes me mad when I think of what my high school did with their computers when they upgraded the entire school about a year ago. One evening around 3:00 a.m., my friend and I were very bored, so we decided to rumage through an abandoned warehouse when all of the sudden we hit the motherload. We counted 138 Dell Optiplex GX100's (along with monitors) just sitting there. We would have taken a few for further "testing", but we went back a few days later and it seemed that someone had noticed our ways of entry, so we think someone may be watching the warehouse. The whole thing makes me sick. But hey, what can you do, they are theirs to do whatever they want with.

[psi42]

Originally posted by JohnT
No these stores are different....the one I frequent has tech staff the works there tearing down and selling. No non-savvy personell. These stores will haggle over the price if you seem interested. Never pay sticker.

Hehe lucky you. The people I was referring to couldn't tell you the difference between a VIC 20 and a Quad-Opteron Linux Beast if you wrote the names in crayon on the respective motherboards.

They're much more clothing-oriented and refuse to haggle as their pretty commercialized chains.
Any old video card gets shoved into a plastic (non-antistatic) bag, marked as "Eletric" and sold for $4.99

[gehidore]

my school did the same with a bunch of 19" viewable monitors, a ton of dell 1ghz 10gb 256ram machines, and some nice server boxes 3 dual 1.3pentium IIIs they sent them away a few weeks ago for "surplusing"

what that means is stupid richkids in the city to the north get to keep them for free, cause their school gives them away.

[Beanis64]

These computers weren't that good. Intel Celeron 450mhz, 128ram, and 10gb hd. But still, to leave them to rot. It just isn't right.

[gehidore]

you could say that a box is a box as long as it can run linux :) :)

[sandboy6184]

retrobox is good, they reply to emails, if there is a problem they will call you. They give tracking numbers and they take time to inspect the hardware before shipping. I shall revcieve my stuff tomorrow.

[Beanis64]

That sounds good. Thanks for suggesting retrobox.

[sandboy6184]

Originally posted by Beanis64
That sounds good. Thanks for suggesting retrobox.

your not welcome

[JohnT]

Originally posted by sandboy6184
your not welcome Stop this ingratiating politness...already:D

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by Beanis64
Hello, I was just wondering if anyone had a favorite and reliable site for buying dinosaur systems where a high price would be around $100. I just plan on doing a little tinkering to better understand computers to help my in my quest for knowledge, and I don't want to mess up the computer I am using now while I am at it.

If you live in or around Toronto, I have 2 Compaq 486's, couple of P1's, 2-14" Compaq monitors, 1-15" Compaq monitor, USR 56k external modems, ISA/PCI ethernet cards, keyboards/mice, HD's, extra memory modules (assorted types) etc. etc. I would like to clear out.

Plus lots of older Linux distro cd's.

All for $250 Cdn.

[Beanis64]

Sorry mdwatts, but I live in South Carolina, which is a bit of a travel to get to Toronto.

[DMR]

Hey, don't knock the Dumpster Scores- you'd be surprised what some companies just toss out when they upgrade. :D

Also, check your area for computer/electronics recyling centers. We have one here (Marin county, CA) that a freind of mine has scored lots of systems, UPSs, peripherals, etc. from. Last year he came home with a fully-functioning Merlin phone system!