Let’s face it, for most of us computers have been fast enough for the past several years. If you have an old computer that you are still trying to use, a “surplus” machine with the addition of Open Source Software can make a fine replacement.
For example, here’s a $109 PC with a Windows XP license. Add OpenOffice.org, Firefox, and a few other free apps and you have a solid day to day PC. Could it use a bit more RAM? Sure. Is the hard drive a bit small for a large movie or music library? Certainly. Will it check email, edit photos, blog, and web surf fine? Most Certainly. And for most of us, that’s good enough!