hitechsquad.com — James Burgett runs the Alameda County Computer Resource Center which takes computers destined to become landfill and installs Linux on them and then gives them out to schools, non-profits, and poor people. CNN calls him a hero, but a local government inspector from the DTSC wants to shut him down.
Oct 3, 2007 View in Crawl 4
sinudeityOct 3, 2007
The man always gotta keep the man down.
metalwolfOct 3, 2007
I have a question for ya pmettes, are the laptops really old or could they be useful to someone else. I know a few people who could use some laptops and you wouldnt have to worry about them being "waste".
potifarOct 3, 2007
He should install Folding@Home or a similar good-for-mankind distributed computing client on the computers as well, for maximum Karma Points.
szandorOct 4, 2007
Yeah, nothing stops Abrams and Apaches like a bunch of angry white guys with Remingtons and Glocks.
herbsoloOct 4, 2007
FYI: The recycling guy asks you to vote for the gorillas:"Vote for the gorillas. 25 grand and fame that id probably just piss away anyway is not worth a specie.I don't know if it will help, but I'd feel like crap if I won and the gorillas went extinct."His blog: <a class="user" href="http://aftermath-technologies.blogspot.com/">http://aftermath-technologies.blogspot.com/</a>
zephyrspecialOct 4, 2007
This is typical of California government. California leads the U.S. in its attempts to be environmentally friendly. Part of that is its government-mandated environmental policies. California's government is also one of the most bureaucratic machines I've ever encountered. It doesn't have a system in place to deal with possible exceptions to its rules, even if they would reduce pollution. For example, in antique-auto shows, usually the only cars that smoke come from California. That is because even the slightest modification to the original specs of a vehicle makes it subject to all the current emissions laws. This case is similar, in that a law designed to regulate computer recycling by businesses in California makes it difficult for a small start-up to get into the business. The law was probably designed to keep computers out of landfills, but the paperwork requirements may shut down a business that is doing exactly that. Paperwork is a big part of doing business in California. From the article, it appears that the state is requiring the business owner to have an inventory system in place, and maybe jump through some other bureaucratic hoops. It's a PITA, but he'll probably have to comply.