A good friend of mine just upgraded his laptop and was wondering whether to sell or scrap the old one. While selling is an immediate option that many exercise, it doesn’t always end up with much money. Why not just use this computer to reduce the toll on the new one?
As we use more and more software on Windows PC’s, more power is required. Linux allows you to use the power of the PC more efficiently if not used for all your daily needs – perfect for that second laptop/desktop you were going to get rid of.
Pramnos has outlined more than a few options for you to do with your old PC:
- Turn it into a dedicated firewall. You can use Linux’s own firewall, Smooth Wall, or Devil Linux.
- Have it as a development Server, so much of your information can be easily accessed away from home.
- Use it as a storage server. All your MP3 collections, photos and more can be backed up and kept on this second PC instead of taking up space and power on your main one.
- A Media Center. If it is strong enough, hook it up in your living room to provide a library of movies and music for your entertainment.
- A P2P download station. Again, instead of bogging down your daily computer with constant downloads, use the other one for this purpose. Actually, you can use apps like VNC to access your old computer through your main one and control your downloads.
- For simple uses such as word processing or Internet surfing, there are Linux apps that can simplify the toll on the PC. Damn Small Linux and Puppy Linux will help you with that.
For further instruction, examples and ideas, you can check out Pramnos page. While I do not use Linux, I have heard more than a few wonderful comments about the operating system.
Picture by Bebete62
