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I ran across a specialized USB cable for connecting to Rio mp3 players. The mp3 player is broken, so I wondered if I would ever need the cable again. I remembered that Rio has discontinued production, so I definitely won't be using it again. I almost dropped it in the wastebasket, but then thought that someone who lost theirs might find it at Goodwill Computer Works, a computer thrift store in Austin.

I can't wait for their computer museum to reopen, but just going to the store is a little lesson in recent computer history. The bins are full of connectors, cables, and jacks for plethora of forgotten computer devices. I still sort of regret passing on a Netpliance I-opener I spotted, since I wrote a research paper on I-opener hacking.

Remembering what a wonderful institution Computer Works is I decided to start a bag of things to take to Goodwill. Here's a sampling:

• cheap quart and two-quart plastic bottles. I used to use these to take water to school and around town, but I've finally admitted that the Nalgene-style polycarbonate bottles really are that much better.
  
• grotty PS/2 mouse from the year 2000.
  
• nice PS/2 Dell QuietKey keyboard. Now that I'm using a Mac, I doubt I'll ever use a computer with PS/2 ports again. I probably bought the keyboard at Goodwill in the first place.
  
• crappy landline telephone/answering machine combo. I don't keep a landline anymore.
  
• plastic pitcher that won't fit in my fridge.
  
• Compaq Aero Pocket PC. Dang, this thing uses a serial port. I don't see much point in a handheld device, but I used to download Web sites like NYTimes.com to this to read on the train. I don't ride trains much in Texas.
  Posted by McChris at August 30, 2005 01:25 PM