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Author Topic: Help put spare laptop to use  (Read 5923 times)

edbro

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Help put spare laptop to use
« on: July 20, 2009, 04:35 PM »
I have a spare laptop that I want to find a use for. It is about 5 years old, has an 80GB hd and the battery is dead. It still works on AC and I don't want to invest in a new battery as I already have a better laptop and 2 desktops. So, what is a good use for this thing? I don't need more central storage as I already have a 1TB NAS with a media server running on it. Is there a way to run antivirus/anti-spyware apps on a central machine and have the others route through that? If so, would that mean I wouldn't need these running on each individual machine? Any other ideas for putting this thing to use?

Edvard

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Re: Help put spare laptop to use
« Reply #1 on: July 20, 2009, 05:06 PM »
My first thought would be to install a Linux distribution on it and see what it can do for you.
The knowledge gained can only help, even if it doesn't convert you.

techidave

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Re: Help put spare laptop to use
« Reply #2 on: July 20, 2009, 06:22 PM »
uh oh Edbro.  Edvard is on the Linux kick ;D

mouser

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Re: Help put spare laptop to use
« Reply #3 on: July 20, 2009, 06:32 PM »
you can't really use it as an antivirus thing..
you could turn it into a digitial photo frame.
or you could give it away to someone on dc :)

Josh

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Re: Help put spare laptop to use
« Reply #4 on: July 20, 2009, 07:09 PM »
Specs? I might buy it off ya

MilesAhead

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Re: Help put spare laptop to use
« Reply #5 on: July 20, 2009, 07:13 PM »
You could use it as a "guinea pig" machine.  Install XP on it and save an image or create a slipstream CD with nLite or something.  If some application you test hoses it, just format and reinstall.

edbro

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Re: Help put spare laptop to use
« Reply #6 on: July 20, 2009, 08:10 PM »
I kinda like the test bed idea. I might give Linux a whirl just to say I did. I also might try Windows Home Server and see what that can do for me. Fortunately, I have a MS Technet subscription so I can try it for free. I'll let you know how it goes. Now, if I could only find some free time to do it in.

Thanks for all the suggestions

J-Mac

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Re: Help put spare laptop to use
« Reply #7 on: July 24, 2009, 03:21 AM »
edbro:  Make a digital frame out of it, possibly for your parents, grandparents, etc. My cousin does this for his family - he's made about a dozen so far. Surprisingly they look much better than purchased digital frames.

Jim

40hz

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Re: Help put spare laptop to use
« Reply #8 on: July 24, 2009, 12:25 PM »
Is there a way to run antivirus/anti-spyware apps on a central machine and have the others route through that? If so, would that mean I wouldn't need these running on each individual machine? Any other ideas for putting this thing to use?

Try Untangle for Windows or Untangle Gateway, depending on what best fits your laptop:

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« Last Edit: July 24, 2009, 12:27 PM by 40hz »