Finding a use for old computer PC motherboards.

[mikepukmel]

Maybe not the right forum, Not completely off topic, thought maybe someone might be interested. Packrat than I am (to my wife's chagrin), I have more than a few old PC motherboards. Seems that when folks throw stuff out these days, they're just on the edge of sata drives, I mean just past IDE. So, can still get drives easily for them. And most have USB ports, although they're probably 1.0. I think most of them boot. Most are old Dell, but a few HP. Can find memory sticks in the garbage for these old things.

They won't run any recent Windows version, so I can't use them for like a desktop. But thinking maybe to install some stripped down version of Linux. Since Linux is small and fast, thinking about using a few of these for some kind of DSP/music experiments. I found some very old source code for simple computer synth.

Anyone do anything like this?

[Mick Bailey]

I have a few old 32 bit machines and they run fine with and SSD, as much memory as they will take, and a cut down OS. My desktop machine runs Mint as the main OS, dual booted with a stripped-out Windows 7. It runs acceptably well and I use it for PIC and Arduino programming.

[mikepukmel]

Cool, thanks Mick.

[Pixel]

I have a couple old 32 bit Atom motherboards I salvaged from some industrial controllers. Both are now running Ubuntu. One of them streams Netflix in the kitchen and the other is for looking up car stuff while working in the garage. They have one PCI slot, one sata port and one ram slot.

[The Dude]

This wasn't worthy of it's own thread, so I'm stuffing it here. I found it pretty interesting and funny to think how far technology has come.

[g1]

5MB in a package larger than a regular upright piano. Contrast that with a usb thumbdrive where 5GB is now considered small, data wise.
On a side note, just to nitpick, judging by the cars and the suits, I would guess 1940s rather than '50s ?

[oc disorder]

"I would guess 1940s rather than '50s ?" - nah back then before Silicon Valley technicians couldn't afford good suits or expensive cars !!!

[mozz]

Round fender Jeep. I know the flat fender Willys was up to at least 1948 so picture is probably correct 50's.

[eschertron]

That's not a computer part... it's Pete Townsend's 8x12 guitar cabinet. We don't see too many of those around anymore, either.