Tech

On this page you'll find both my own personal tech collection and stuff I've seen during different jobs and out and about.

I've loved technology ever since I was a kid. I especially love the fun and out of the box designs that the early 2000's brought.

I'll be showcasing each item and talking a bit about it below. You may see some of these on my blog page in the future.

Scroll down to view! ^^

iBook G3/300 Clamshell (Tangerine)

This is my very own iBook G3 Clamshell from 1999. After the release of the first generation iMacs, Apple needed to make a portable version of their consumer PC. And this is exactly what this is, an iMac to go.

I currently have it running Mac OS 10.3.9 (highest supported version) but I may revert to something before OS X since its pretty laggy (however that could just be because of the HDD). I'm also planning on replacing the HDD with either a new one or an SSD. I also need to fix the mouse button as it doesn't currently register any input, however that may be a bit too hard/expensive. For the price I got it at (~$200 USD), even though it needs a few seemingly minor repairs, I'd say it was a decent purchase.

It's one of my personal favorites when it comes to Apple's products. It was such a breakthrough in computer design, straying away from the boring and bland designs of portable computers (and computers in general) in the past (just like the iMac did). Sadly, many brands have gone back to making computers bland again, in fact, some designs are even more boring than they were; Apple's especially.

But back to my main point, it's one of my favorite pieces of tech. And like almost all of his products, it's one of Steve's favorites too.

PowerBook G3 Lombard

This is my PowerBook G3. It's currently the oldest laptop I own, being released in May 1999 (just a tiny bit older than my clamshell). I kinda made this my stopping point for old Apple as I really feel anything beforehand just isn't super useful or cool to me. I really just use this for running classic programs since I have it running Mac OS 9.2.2.

But aside from that, it really is a great computer. The number of ports on this thing is absolutely perfect. I was also surprised to find the battery in working condition! The battery life is really great, holding a charge for about 5 or 6 hours before running out.

Apple Newton MessagePad 120

Dell XPS m170

Although from an outside view it may seem that I like to glaze Apple, I do enjoy other computers from that time. Although Windows tries to absolutely knock off Apple as much as they can (perfect example) and is lacking a few years of quality with its UI, it still is one of the compatible and usable older operating systems around.

Without further introduction, this is a Dell laptop of mine from their high-end XPS line. This computer was released in 2005, and I currently have it running Windows XP SP2 (the design is meant for XP MCE; however, I have no use for that). I mainly use this for playing older games and, of course, running any other older executable files. As for the design itself, it's one of the best I've ever seen. It's for sure a visually pleasing design (badass gaming lights), but that's not the main thing I love about it. This computer has the perfect number and variety of ports available: Optical drive, 6 USB 2.0 ports, SD Card port, PCMCIA port, FireWire, Line output, Microphone input, VGA output, DVI-D output and an S-Video output.

That is the one thing I absolutely hate about modern computer design. Everyone thinks that they need to make the thinnest device ever, when in reality (at least in my opinion) the thickness doesn't matter if I get more ports. I don't want to spend a ludicrous amount on adapters for my two lonely USB-c ports. Many laptops since the start of the 2000s haven't been heavy enough for them to make much of a difference. I don't care if I have to carry an extra 7 pounds in my backpack if it means I get more compatibility.

just an fyi that my personal collection ends here this text is temp but im too lazy rn to figure out what to put here.

iMac G3 (Ruby)

This is an iMac G3 that I found and repaired while working for my school's tech department. I found it in one of the old offices in our basement on a shelf surrounded by some rack servers (image was taken after moving it to another storage room). There were two iMacs in total, only one of which worked. The working iMac had a Linux-based OS on the HDD because the former tech department employee that used it thought Linux was somehow superior to MacOS or Windows. The HDD in the broken iMac needed to be accessed as it had what I believe was student records data (could you find any info on the program they used, so that's just a guess)? So it was my job to swap the drives in order to try and get that information. This was my first time working on an older iMac, and I'm really glad it went so well.

Power Mac G4

Found two of these G4 Power Macs in the Elementary school. Didn't really do much with it but just turned it on to check if it worked. Always loved the way these computers open.

iBook G3 Clamshell (Blueberry)

More coming soon.