[rtpnet-tact] Status: Computer recycling/reuse

[Judy Hallman]

To TACT list:

I've been working with
Shelly Bowers-Roghelia <SBowers at unitedwaytriangle.org> and
Michael Hershey <MHershey at unitedwaytriangle.org> of Teaming for Technology
(T4T), Triangle United Way, on computer recycling/reuse.  T4T is now an
RTPnet member. Shelly, Michael, and I have started work on transforming
the Web page that I had at http://www.rtpnet.org/recycle to become
http://www.rtpnet.org/t4t

We have a "transition" page now at http://www.rtpnet.org/recycle/ .
The next step will be to transform it from an RTPnet page to a T4T page.
If you'd like to refer to the previous RTPnet version, see
http://www.rtpnet.org/recycle/recycle03jul.shtml

This does NOT mean that RTPnet is dropping recycling/reuse efforts. There
are many ways we can help T4T, like finding more dropoff sites and
volunteers to help refurbish machines.

As noted in http://www.rtpnet.org/rtpnet/goals/ , the RTPnet program
lacked drop off points, a collection mechanism, a refurbishing mechanism,
and criteria for determining who receives computers. T4T has two people
(Shelly and Michael) working specifically on computer reuse issues.

The previous Web page has been very effective at bringing in donations. It
ranks well in Google, and people find it when they want to get rid of a
computer. So that's good. (I plan to keep our web page as an alias for the
T4T page so we can continue to benefit from Google's ranking.) But the Web
page also brought in LOTS of requests for computers, and we had no
procedures for filling the requests. T4T does.

http://www.rtpnet.org/recycle/needs.shtml shows some of the local needs
for computers that we were not able to fill.

http://www.rtpnet.org/recycle/requests.txt shows raw data that came in
through our form from people requesting computers. This is not spam.
Someone actually filled out an online form. There is a similar file at
http://www.rtpnet.org/recycle/requests02.txt of requests from last year.
There are additional requests on the forums pages,
http://www.rtpnet.org/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=4 is the new forum and
http://www.rtpnet.org/phorum/list.php?f=23 is the old forum.

I think we've come a long way since we first started working on recycling,
in May of last year. Many thanks to Jeffrey Martin and Erroll Reese for
allowing us to store computers at EasyWeb, Inc., to Bob Sams for his
assistance, and especially to Jerry Winegarden for his continuing work to
fix up computers, install them, and provide support. And to Cindy Bird for
getting RTPnet involved.

Judy Hallman (hallman at rtpnet.org, http://www.rtpnet.org/hallman)
Executive Director, RTPnet, NC (http://www.RTPnet.org/)