I know you may have that old Pentium III or IV at home. It is packed somewhere at home and declared ‘useless’. There are many reasons that people throw away old hardware, especially computers. One of the main reason maybe because it is old technology and may not live up to expectations with the ever changing innovations we have now.
Most of these machines were installed with Windows (which is what most of us use) and so with the changes, they become incompatible with the latest Windows operating systems.
What I am going to tell you will surprise you. Why throw away these old machines? We can put back these computers into very good use with latest changes in digital technology. We can make these machines do the same things your up-to-date computers can do. How do we going to do this? Before we go ahead, let’s first of all talk about something that you may have or may never have heard of.
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Linux Distribution
In Africa, many people don’t know about other operating systems other than Windows or MacOS (very few know about this). Linux is an operating system just like any of the above. The only difference is that it is not being marketed like Windows and MacOS. This is because it is community-based. Every bid of its development is done by a community of people who have dedicated their time to do it for free. It is available for all to use it for free.
Linux is a free and open source operating system software that comes in more than 300 distributions. This means you can choose from any of these operating systems to use. The good thing is that none of them are obsolete. They are being updated by the community on a daily bases to meet up with our digital realities.
Are you worried about learning Linux? It’s easy, checkout 6 Best Linux Distributions for Beginners in 2018
One Great Advantage
Linux distributions (distros) are made to be used depending on the needs of the users. There are distros that are there to serve the needs of developers, others for office work, others for games, some for graphic and video editing and so on.
Old Computers & the Environment
It is worthy of note that Linux did not forget the old hardware. Linux is community based and works in other to give each community what it deserves. They care a lot for the environment. It tries to make sure that our environment is protected as well as putting into use what we have to the optimum.
Do you know about the Three Rs, reuse, recycle and reduce? This is a way of managing garbage taking into consideration our environment. Linux is out to protect our environment while reducing waste of our hard-earned resources (money in particular).
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There are many Linux distributions that have been developed just to make use of old hardware. The Linux community doesn’t want people to throw away hardware just because they are obsolete. This gives a burden to the environment and a financial burden to the owner. Linux makes use of two of the Rs, reduce and reuse.
Reduce in the sense that you will not be adding another computer at home which will one day go obsolete again, but reusing what you already had with an up-to-date operating system.
Linux is free
Linux is not a proprietary software like Microsoft Windows and MacOS. This means it is not sold. It is free to be used and shared with family and friends. It comes with no strings tied to it. You don’t have any right to sell it but you have the right to share. You can run Linux operating systems without any anti-virus and your computer and files will still be protected. You have up-to-date applications that you run on other operating systems with same performance and experience.
Bring Back Your Old Computer to Live
These old computers can be brought back to live. We are talking here about Pentium III, M or PIVs. Many people use Windows and since it tends to be slower on these computer, they are abandoned. Users don’t know that they just need it to be tuned up. This can be done better with Linux distros. Some of them may still be easily fixed because they have just a bad disk or broken CD. Many people because of changes in technology, toss off computers with hardware problem instead of fixing them.
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Our goal is to refurbish these computers and put them to use again. If you don’t want to use them again, you can donate to others who can’t afford new ones. More than three-quarter of the population of Cameroon do not own a computer. People have to move to cybers to use a shared one. This situation is worse in rural areas where they have to trek for very long distances in other to work on a computer. Some families have to share one computer alongside their kids. There are many schools that do not have or have limited computer access. These refurbished machines could be very useful for them even though it is not new. There are some people out there that will gladly take your discarded old computer, refurbish with an efficient Linux Distro and reuse.
How do we do it?
After reading this post, if you have an old hardware, just get in touch with us. We are ready to come to your place and install or collect. You can still bring it to our office if it s convenient for you.
Do you need to pay?
Linux distros are free and not proprietary. That’s true. But offering other services linked to Linux can entail some cost if and only if it doesn’t involve the selling of the operating system or any free and open source application that works with it.
Anyhow, what we are going to charge will be enough to cover any cost we incur in the work, but we are not going to charge you for the software and any applications installed. Try us and you will see. The cost is just minimal when compared to others who have to not only sell the operating system, but the applications to be installed (like the anti-virus which is not necessary with Linux).
Get these 25 Free Books To Learn Linux For Free
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