Ok, dont get me wrong, the latest and greatest tech is an amazing thing, but old hardware is where it's at. Why would I say that? because older hardware is inexpensive (or even free!), readily available and almost always have plenty of life left. Thanks to excellent marketing by computer companies, many people believe (including tech heads such as myself) that you need the latest multi-core 10 terabyte power house which is simply not the case, especially when operating systems like Linux, which run on fewer resources than windows are thrown into the mix. Non-technical users are not always willing to learn a new OS, so I find that Linux is most useful running on old desktops or even laptops for server use.
Take my home server, for example. Its an old IBM ThinkCentre with a Pentium 4, 512mb ram, and CD-Rom. The system is at least 6 years old, and I got it for free from my office during a company wide system refresh - they were going to throw it away! Now, I have installed Xubuntu Linux, and have it sharing a 1.5tb hard drive to windows, linux, and a Mac at home while it also serves up FTP, SSH, and DNS (how to's on the way!) and the machine handles the load well, even though when I acquired it it ran windows horribly with only 512mb ram. So if your old PC is tired don't chuck it into the landfill, because it just may have another life ahead of it.
