XPost: comp.sys.cbm   
   From: J.bielak@REMOVEMETOSEND.Questarian.com   
      
   The other day I was looking at an old PET 8032 and a Model III and I   
   thought, "Hmmm, you know they'd make pretty cool retro PC cases." Now,   
   before anyone yells at me about ruining a classic machine, please know   
   that I'd never gut a functional classic computer just to turn in into   
   some generic PC... but it did raise something some interesting   
   preservationist questions in my mind, and I wondered what the people in   
   the community might have to say:   
      
   When is it OK to "update" a classic computer (swap 5.25 drives with 3.5   
     or flash interfaces, change the tube monitor with an LCD panel, etc.)   
     and at what point does it become "destructive"? Is it OK to swap the   
   red LED's in a original Altair with blue ones?   
      
   At what point is it OK to gut a classic machine and retask it(for a mod   
   casing, mailbox etc.) If we're to say "when it's broken", at what point   
   is it "beyond repair"?   
      
   At what point should even a non functional machine be preserved simply   
   for what it is? (such as a vintage aircraft, ship, etc.) Should old   
   parts be preserved just for the instance when someone, at some point in   
   the future, might attempt to scavenger parts to rebuild one working   
   example of the machine?   
      
   At some point in time I'm going to die and there a very good chance that   
   my humble collection of classic (mostly all functional) machines will   
   end up in a land fill... So, when I retire from collecting should I:   
   A. Sell them off on e-bay or some serious private collector.   
   B. Donate them to a museum, if one exists.   
   C. Give them away to whatever "community" that may exist at that point.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)