Howard Fosdick

I second your vote for antiX. Among the several distros I've tried designed specifically for older computers, it's one of the best. It's simple to install, reliable, and bundles a complete set of tools (even with its limited footprint). Also, the antiX team has done a good job identifying the tools that need to be added to such a minimalist distro. It's great to see a distro so focused on what users want, instead of what developers think they want or are most interested in developing.

What a wonderful, inspiration article. I hope it inspires others to "give back" in the way Mr Shapiro does.

I heartily agree with the view that a computer one person considers "obsolete" can be invaluable to someone else. Over the years I've sometimes collected computers for charity and have found that many folks toss out PCs because they can't run a current version of Windows -- even though the hardware works just fine. Install a lightweight linux on these computers, and you have an excellent PC for somebody who might otherwise be forced to rely only on their cell for internet access.

The biggest challenge I'm running into in refurbishing these days is that web pages are growing so large. I read somewhere they've doubled in size just over the past few years. I believe it! Masking off ads and trackers seems to help a lot, but it still is challenging.

I use only refurbished PCs for my own work.