Those chargers are still sold. I'd sell it to someone who can use it rather than let it get destroyed.

Sometimes, you might find the charger in the future. Worth keeping it for six months and reflecting on it. With a live CD and USB drive, the HD is not really needed. It is worth it to open and clean the insides a bit. Can be used for experience to work with laptop hardware, see what is inside and what is not, remove and reinstall items inside. I have been missing such opportunities locally and am learning to be more careful.

Do you know who you're talking to here? I am so clumsy that I can't open a computer without wrecking it.

Just for amusement, I looked up some chargers online. But the illustrations never show you a close-up of the actual connector, so you have to buy blind and just hope it fits. Not worth it for some old clanger.

hazel, for those 25£ you could buy a more powerful computer...
however, i bet this thinkpad has a pretty good keyboard. that is not outdated and costs more than cheap chips from china.

Yes, it's a lovely keyboard. Same size as the typewriter part of a separate keyboard and the action feels real. But I already have a spare usb keyboard floating around that I can plug into my Samsung when I need it.

I'd love to give this machine to someone who could make good use of it, but I don't know any local hardware geeks.

Try local freecycle groups, craiglist, kijiji or their equivalents in the UK. Even some students might be interested in getting it for retro interest.

There is a charger one can get here, it has multiple tips that can be fixed for different laptops and fits almost all laptops. Consider looking at those.

I just discovered today that a friend of mine has an old Toshiba laptop that someone gave him and that he has no use for. That one does have a charger. So I now have two provisionally available.

The vicar of my church is trying to get us more involved in the community. I wonder if we could start a recycling scheme for old computers. I could put Linux on them and we could target them on people who aren't online yet, perhaps poor families or old folks. I wouldn't mind giving a few lessons, like I am doing for my "computer virgin" friend (she's coming along fine by the way).

I remember when my company (of the time) gave me a thinkpad. Very solid, somewhat slow, hated that little mouse pointer "nub" thing, but it was dependable. I think it fell off the property sheets and the gave it away to someone. I do nto think anyone could figure out how to break one.

That one needed a special network card to get network (We used Token Ring at the time) as there was nothing for networking built into the model. Windows 98 SE if I recall properly, so the USB port (there was ONLY one) worked but it could not boot from it.

If I could get one for free today, I would try to find SOME way to put it to work. Something that hard to take down impressed me.

I am ashamed to admit but I really don't know whether anything has been set up to donate Linux machines to those without internet access in the UK.
I just expect that "smart phones" are the new target of government "accessibility".

Yes, this will be a very nice move. One of the main aims of this thread is to assist others use old computers. This way you will save them from the landfill and help your community also.

Many of those retired and on limited income etc., are offline as net is not affordable for all. For such folks, you can make a custom DVD with free ebooks, audiobooks, pictures, other resources etc., and give them a copy or two of it. This way, they will have some materials to use even if they are offline. Older USB flash drives and external Hard drives are harder to find but these can also be gifted to those who will use them.

Here is one such scheme:
https://www.choose.co.uk/guide/free-...-benefits.html

There are lots of lonely folks including seniors:
http://endoftheamericandream.com/arc...erly-depressed

Some of them might appreciate a free computer. Connecting with local social workers who help the needy is also a good idea in this regard.

ok, i'll need to say this:

some people have the notion that giving something away for free is always a good deed.
but it depends.
the charity/recycling shops i know don't even take donations indiscriminately anymore. because it would leave them with a huge pile of problematic rubbish that nobody even wants for free.
take the thinkpad from the example above: 250MB RAM (and an accordingly slow and outdated processor i presume) - you wouldn't do anyone a favor with that. neither the financially challenged single mother nor the lonely elderly person could use this to browse the web or send emails via gmail.com.

i find it sanctimonious to pretend that i'm helping others with a decade-old piece of hardware that isn't able to run a current desktop operating system.

there's a certain window of opportunity for used electronics, and after that window closes you are better off recycling the machine.

of course, this is written from the viewpoint of someone living in a so-called western country. in other countries things might be slightly different, but not much, the internet being what it is globally.

all that said, there was a thread on another forum titled "Hacks for old unused laptops" with some nice ideas.
i was particularly intrigued by the wall clock idea - extra challenge to keep the power consumption at a minimum... so, a thinkpad stylish retro museum piece cum wall clock.

Thanks for bringing us all back down to earth! You're right about the Thinkpad. It's a really clunky old piece, a lovely toy for a hardware geek but no real use to anyone else. It doesn't even have wifi (though of course you could always use a dongle). My friend's Toshiba is a slightly different matter. I don't know the specs but it could still be a useful machine. I'd have to investigate it to know if it was worth recycling or not.

I know what 250MB feels like. Oldboy upstairs is that size and it won't even run the present-day version of Firefox.

As the saying goes, one man's trash is another man's treasure. I see the following modes of using older hardware: 1. Text mode, 2. Audio mode, 3. Video Mode. Most older hardware we find is ok for the first two modes text and audio, this is specially good for someone who can't afford to be online. Web is getting more powerful these days, so a better PC is needed to access all web features. For now I still manage even this mostly with P4 luckily.
Older hardware is also ok for retro games like dos games. I am not just saying these things theoretically, I am actually using such hardware and live in West also.

That thread is quite informative, thanks for this. There are lots of youtube videos also about folks cleaning, repairing and using older computers. They are good for learning as well as motivational towards using older hardware.