Old Macs on life support

[Sly]

So how do you keep you old Macs alive?

Having a (very rare) couple of hours free I decided to boot up all my old Powerbooks which did all work about a year ago.

From my collection I now have the following casualties: PB100 - Dead, nothing, no chime, tried two power bricks, PB140 - HD gone, PB520c - LCD fault so now has a row of dead pixels, PB190 - dead, no chime, PB1400 - battery dead (new 2 years ago), PBG3 Wallstreet PRAM battery dead + HD clicking loudly, iBook clamshell battery dead, emate 300 - battery dead (new last year!). The rest all seem ok - for now. The desk top Macs will have to wait for another day/year.

I suspect half the problem is that I have to store my collection in the loft as it takes up too much space anywhere else. Also I don't have the time to use them on a daily or even weekly err or monthly basis.

 

[applefan1997]

When I had older Macs, I tried to use them often. I got rid of most every one, except the case of a Quadra 605 I really want to keep. I want a Duo now.

 

[Roquefort]

Two things I do:

1. Keep them plugged in, even when powered off, so batteries don't drain.

2. If they develop symptoms you can live with, accept it. I'm serious about this. If you are keeping them for nostalgia or for very occasional use, it may not be worth effort or money to try to fix minor problems.

 

[deriko100]

Try to keep them in a good condition since they will be valuable in the later years.

 

[velocityg4]

The main problem I see is being stored in the loft. Which can mean major temperature fluctuations, very high heat during the summer and excess humidity any of which can cause a lot of problems with electronics. I would say store them somewhere with a stabler temperature. Say in a closet or under the bed.

 

[jodelli]

The only older Mac I still use is a G3 iMac that is the sole repository of Classic mode programs I'm just not willing to abandon. Well, that and a G4 Power Mac with 10.4.11, but that one still does yeoman duty with a few upgrades.

Just recently recycled a 7600 and 9500 after removing drives and the two G3 processors still sitting here.

Still have a 520C that worked before the PS shorted, and a 170 running off of an old printer PS that just happens to have similar specs.

Others gone in the last few years are a 7500 and a 7100 with a nubus G3 in it, a 540c, a 5300, two Wallstreets, and a white iBook.

Guess I'm no longer up to keeping them all running.

 

[applefan1997]

I can't really keep the desktops because they take up lots of room, but an older laptop doesn't.