Graphics Card for Pentium 3 Dual Processor server. [Legacy Machine]

The short answer is that it’s a legacy machine with now obsolete media peripherals like a Iomega Zip and Jazz drive. I’m in a part of the country where there are still some clients who have everything stored on media that people haven’t touched in a long time. Just because nobody else has a Jazz or Zip drive doesn’t mean they still don’t need to have their old media accessed.

I still use this server to access older programs and files from the past 15 years and it is still used as a storage device for my current work. It’s not attached to the internet and works as a really good archive tool. There are some older image generating programs that just aren’t supported or updated any more that I like to dabble with occasionally. I also enjoy using some fractal programs that tie up my most modern computer and I like to set the other computers to work on that while I’m doing my real work that pays and has deadlines.

This isn’t my only computer, my newest computer is only a year old, I have three others that I’ve hung onto as legacy machines. This Gateway 7210 Server just so happens to be the first computer I’ve ever bought myself; it wasn’t a gift or hand-me-down from someone else.

Another reason – the fact is that restoring and refurbishing this unit is more like a hobby, like restoring an old car or furniture. I’ve learned a lot about other aspects of computers out there in the meantime and my wife and I have agreed that so long as the bills are paid and we’ve already put money into savings/retirement and I don’t spend too much I’m free to keep at this.

As for the parts, I’ve always known or believed that somewhere out there in the world that there were warehouses full of obsolete parts that didn’t sell because of something else was released and customers weren’t interested in anymore. It’s just a matter of finding out where those parts are and put them to use so long as they aren’t out of range of our budget.

Could also be “The Fisk Curse” - My dad, grandfather and great grandfather were innovators who have built things just because they could, and then found a use for them later. My dad is infamous in the HAM Radio community for building various types of antenna tuners, modular motor drivers, and other things even though there are new technologies that can do these jobs he still likes to find other ways. It’s like trying to find other approaches and techniques to the same problems or ways of doing things. My dad has made about 20 different versions of antenna tuners and recently was bragging that he’s come up with a new idea that’s going to make “a million dollars.”

I want to max this thing out just because I can even if it makes sense to nobody else. Just because I can do something doesn’t mean I should. It’s a momentary distraction from the other things in my life.

Hey, Mo

I have some really good memories of building things with my dad. He was really impressed that he didn’t have to teach me how to solder since I watched him do it so many times. We used CADD programs to create the circuit boards and the assembly instructions and layouts for many of the devices we created. The sad part is we didn’t keep at it, we moved on to other things – I became a full time Graphic Designer and he went off the deep-end with some of his HAM RADIO equipment.

The one thing I learned in spite of him is that you don’t scrimp on computers. You get what you pay for. If you don’t by a machine with the fastest processors, the most RAM, the most storage, the best monitor, you might as well not try to start a business or do work from home. I’ve learned the hard way – The Best Tools for The Job!

Thanks for the warm wishes on that graphics card, I’m going to order it ASAP with the next pay check. There are a couple of other things I need for it, too. I’m angry at myself that I got rid of another machine I owned from that period that all the parts I could have used on this server. Live and learn.

Keep in touch!