"You Up?" by Alex Krokus, nevver.
Copyright © 2023 thisisnthappiness.com
"You Up?" by Alex Krokus, nevver.
Copyright © 2023 thisisnthappiness.com
This is the comic I mentioned; a 10-year-old computer struggling to do regular computer things. This is the number-one cause of electronic waste, ahead of breakage and intentional discards to stay on top of product trends; the computer begins to run objectionably slowly and it seems easier to just replace the computer rather than continue to put up with poor performance. Even computer-literate people have problems here, but I managed to hustle some information out of the IT guy when I took my studio computer into the shop a couple years ago. There is a specific set of user-serviceable reasons why computers slow down, and none of them are "it's old and needs replacement". Does your computer take a long time to load its operating system? It's probably the hard drive. Does your computer randomly bluescreen? You probably need new RAM. Does your computer automatically open browser windows with adverts on them when you connect to the internet? It's probably got some malware. See? These are all easily identifiable, apply to basically all computers made from 1998 onwards, completely non-mysterious, and easily fixed. Only in the case that the computer does not boot at all do we have to consider the CPU as a cause; admittedly, in laptops, a busted CPU probably will require you to replace the computer.
Now, I recognise that the comic up there is not advocating for the user to replace their 10-year-old laptop, and was probably only inspired by events in the cartoonist's own life. However, my mobile studio runs on a Windows 7 laptop from 2011; it runs whip-cracking fast, starts up on a moment's notice, and performs every task I ask of it admirably (that is, all tasks within its abilities; it won't run The Sims 2, but that's fine because I don't need it to). My main computer also runs Windows 7 and it was built in 2013. So, on that score, I guess I'm a bit defensive about 10+ year old computers, especially in this era of throwing away a perfectly good piece of technology after 3 months because a new one with an extra megapixel got released an hour ago. Not only does that put us squarely in the pockets of people who don't need any more money, but it's also bad for the environment and it puts more people in slavery in the Congo-Kinshasa coltan mines.
There's no such thing as an old computer.
--22 April 2024--