Friday, April 22, 2005

Consumer guilt

I got my computer in 1999 as a high-school graduation present. I was planning to replace it when it turned five, but then I decided to put that off until this coming summer, since when I get a new computer I will be getting Sims 2 (my current processor is too slow for Sims 2), and having a new addictive computer game is not a good idea when you're working full-time AND taking night classes.

But now that the date I planned to replace my computer is approaching, I'm starting to feel guilty about doing so because I don't actually NEED a new computer, and I don't want to become all consumerist, buying new things because they're new and shiny.

My old computer is turning six this summer, it doesn't have PowerPoint (which could be a hindrance to working from home - it hasn't been a hindrance yet, but I want to work from home more than I do now), and it processor is too slow for me to buy current games. I'm also running Windows 98, which MS either already has or soon will stop supporting. The computer gets sluggish enough that it needs rebooting every ten days, which isn't TOO too bad, and it takes about 2-3 minutes to reboot.

But I'm feeling really hesitant to replace it because, other than my lack of PowerPoint and my inability to play Sims 2, I'm not actually having any problems with it. Rebooting it every ten days isn't any trouble, and I don't mind waiting 2-3 minutes for it to reboot. I guess part of the thing is that I'm kind of emotionally attached to this computer - it contains the entire records of my transformation from adolescent to grown-up. It has all my DOS games from childhood, my ICQ history shows the formation of the most important relationships in my life, and it contains literally all my university schoolwork. I became the person I am now on this computer. Of course, I don't have to actually throw it out, I can keep it around as long as I want. And I certainly am going to keep it around, at least until I can transfer all the important files to my new computer. (Anyone know how to transfer ICQ history from one computer to another so that it can still be read on a new computer?) So maybe I should replace it before it dies, so I can still salvage all the stuff to which I am emotionally attached. I see no sign that it's going to die soon, but I have no way of knowing when/if it will die suddenly.

The other reason I don't want to buy a new computer is because I don't really want to be the kind of person who disposes of something just because it's old and there's a newer model available. My computer has served me very well for many years, and I don't want to treat it like a trophy wife. If I didn't have enough money to buy a new computer I wouldn't be bemoaning the fact that I couldn't afford one or trying to scrimp and save because it so badly needs replacing - the worst I'd be doing is casually worrying about what I'd do if my current computer died, but as I mentioned before I have no particular reason to believe that might happen. It just feels too materialistic to go around buying something new and expensive just because my perfectly serviceable current model is old. Financially I can afford to be materialistic - especially about something so important to my day-to-day life as a computer - but karmatically it doesn't feel so good to do so.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Buy a Macintosh "mini," C$650. It's a small little thing with a lot of computational power that comes without any attachments at all. That means that you still use your current keyboard, mouse, monitor, and everything else. The mini is so small that you can keep your old computer on the desktop as well. You can even get a toggle box so that you don't have to un/hook the peripherals when you want to switch.

apple.ca/store

impudent strumpet said...

Unfortunately, some of the software I need for work isn't available for a Mac, and I don't want to eliminate the possibility of being able to work from home.