Exploring Uses of Old Macs

This is a blog where we explore old Macs with a present day perspective. It is written by me, Andreas Dreyer Hysing. I am a Engineer and from Norway. I have been a mac user since 2005 so machines from 2005 feels like a natural starting point for all my explorations.

These machines have had their time. The goal is not to show case what these machines used to be good at, but rather showcase what they are good at today. I want to showcase as many uses as possible. Apple Macs has an elegant design and a robust stainless steel hardware. I hope to inspire as many as readers as possible to keep hold to their old Apple machines or buy one second hand. If you can find a use case for an old machine you probably skip buying a new one saving both cash and the environment in the process.

The last year prices for a top modern Raspberry PI been roughly 1600 NOK. With these prices on the pi I would argue that second hand apple machines are cheaper per performance for any hobbyist concidering a single board computer.

I have to add one disclaimer. Old Macs comes with no new security patches. That makes them unfit for businesses. Also with an outdated OS you will spend more time finding and installing software than usual. If you are payed by the our I highly recommend you spend your money on a cloud vendor instead.

From here we will explore the edges of what these machines can do. We will bring them to the brink of their usefullness. If you have a mac. Hang on and learn from my mistakes. 