Only Use Old Computers! | Luke Smith

• description: The ideal ThiccPad

If there is a single point of advice I can offer novice computer users,
it is stop using modern computers.
If you look at "technology YouTube," by which I mean the massive multi-million subscriber channels, nearly all of
it is devoted to constantly reviewing and comparing every new computer,
processor, graphics card and product. There's big money in it because
obviously all of these companies put money in it, but also if you're a
normal person, you automatically assume you need the "best"
technology.
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The ideal ThiccPad 理想的 ThiccPad

If there is a single point of advice I can offer novice computer users, it is stop using modern computers.
如果我可以为新手计算机用户提供一点建议，那就是 停止使用现代计算机 。

If you look at "technology YouTube," by which I mean the massive multi-million subscriber channels, nearly all of it is devoted to constantly reviewing and comparing every new computer, processor, graphics card and product. There's big money in it because obviously all of these companies put money in it, but also if you're a normal person, you automatically assume you need the "best" technology.
如果你看看“技术 YouTube”，我指的是数百万订阅者的庞大频道，几乎所有的频道都致力于不断审查和比较每台新计算机、处理器、显卡和产品。其中有大笔资金，因为显然所有这些公司都投入了资金，但如果你是一个普通人，你会自动认为你需要“最好的”技术。

Do you need a modern computer?您需要一台现代计算机吗？

Absolutely not. More than 95% of people could be using a computer from 2008 or before without any problems. Needing a recent machine is limited to people who:
绝对不行。超过 95% 的人可以毫无问题地使用 2008 年或之前的计算机。需要最新机器的仅限于以下人员：

1. Do extreme, professional, processor-intensive video-rendering.
   进行极限、专业、处理器密集型视频渲染。
2. Compile massive programs and operating systems with severe time constraints.
   编译具有严格时间限制的海量程序和作系统。
3. Play recent triple AAA video-games on high settings.
   在高设置下玩最近的三级 AAA 视频游戏。
4. Use many massive Electron apps and other inexcusably bad software written by soydevs and other people who shouldn't be writing software.
   使用许多大型 Electron 应用程序和其他由 soydevs 和其他不应该编写软件的人编写的不可原谅的糟糕软件。

The last two reasons aren't really real reasons at all because they are totally unnecessary and avoidable things.
最后两个原因根本不是真正的原因，因为它们是完全不必要且可以避免的事情。

But to the point, watching YouTube videos and using a word processor does not require last month's new release.
但就目前而言，观看 YouTube 视频和使用文字处理器并不需要上个月的新版本。

Every video I upload, I transcode for settings optimal for YouTube, meaning I render each video I record. On my computer from a decade ago, that still takes only a couple minutes. A fancy $5000 computer might be able to do it in less than one, but it is honestly not worth the pain associated with modern computers.
我上传的每个视频都会对最适合 YouTube 的设置进行转码，这意味着我会渲染我录制的每个视频。在我十年前的电脑上，这仍然只需要几分钟。一台价值 5000 美元的精美计算机可能可以在不到一台的时间内完成，但老实说，它不值得与现代计算机相关的痛苦。

How much should a computer cost a normal person?普通人一台电脑应该花多少钱？

Either nothing or just around $200, I say. I use a ThinkPad X220 I got for $90 on eBay. Before that, I used another ThinkPad X220 I also got for $90. Like anything else, if you are buying things on Amazon, you're doing it wrong.
我说，要么什么都没有，要么只是 200 美元左右。我使用在 eBay 上以 220 美元的价格买到的 ThinkPad X90。在此之前，我使用了另一台 ThinkPad X220，我也以 90 美元的价格买到了它。就像其他任何事情一样， 如果你在亚马逊上买东西，那你就做错 了。

The Pain of Modern Computers现代计算机的痛苦

As computing has become more and more popular, companies have started to realize that a consumer's first reaction on having their $5 wifi card die is immediately buy a whole new computer. This means two things: (1) they don't bother to make computers easy to repair, in fact, they make it more difficult and (2) there is absolutely no need to make computers durable at all. In fact, it's probably better to let computers break so you'll get yet another sale.
随着计算变得越来越流行，公司开始意识到，消费者在 5 美元的 wifi 卡死机后的第一反应是立即购买一台全新的计算机。这意味着两件事：（1）他们懒得让计算机易于维修，事实上，他们让它变得更加困难，（2）完全没有必要让计算机耐用。事实上，最好让计算机坏掉，这样你就会得到另一笔销售。

Apple is by far the most anti-social computing company because of this. I'll let the larger tech channels show you the specifics, but every Apple product is brilliantly designed to make it difficult to fix very basic and otherwise fixable problems. They have quite a racket licensing out the ability and tools to companies that want to fix their terrible hardware. Apple even used pentalobe screws just so normal people couldn't open their computers up with a typical screwdriver. Of course nowadays every other computer manufacturer imitates the Apple style where apparent "sleekness" is supposed to be a signal of high quality.
因此，苹果是迄今为止最反社会的计算公司。我将让较大的技术渠道向您展示具体细节，但每款 Apple 产品都经过精心设计，使其难以解决非常基本且可修复的问题。他们有相当多的赌博，将能力和工具授权给想要修复其糟糕硬件的公司。苹果甚至使用了五角螺丝，这样普通人就无法用典型的螺丝刀打开电脑。当然，如今所有其他计算机制造商都在模仿苹果风格，其中明显的“时尚”应该是高质量的信号。

Modern computers are increasingly monitoring devices and come with proprietary junk.现代计算机越来越多地监控设备，并带有专有垃圾。

The Management Engine 管理引擎

You might've heard that all Intel i3/i5/i7 processors (that is, after the Intel Core 2 Duo) have an onboard alternate processor that is meant to function as spyware. This is called the Intel Management Engine. It can view your memory and connect to the internet: basically all modern computers have this permanent back door. In older computers, say the ThinkPad X200, you can, with a little hardware action, remove the other processor and replace the proprietary BIOS with Libreboot or Coreboot, but that is not possible on more modern computers (you can install Coreboot on a more modern machine, but not all of the components of the Management Engine are removed).
您可能听说过所有英特尔 i3/i5/i7 处理器（即在 英特尔酷睿 2 双核）有一个板载备用处理器，这意味着 充当间谍软件。这称为英特尔管理引擎。它 可以查看你的记忆并连接到互联网：基本上都是现代的 计算机有这个永久的后门。在较旧的计算机中，请说 ThinkPad X200，您可以通过一些硬件作来删除另一个 处理器，并将专有的 BIOS 替换为 Libreboot 或 Coreboot ，但这在更现代的计算机上 是不可能 的（您可以在更现代的计算机上安装 Coreboot，但并非删除了管理引擎的所有组件）。

More recent computers, however are non-removable spyware by design and, yes, the NSA can monitor any machine with a Management Engine. There are actually even rumors that one of the taps that the FBI under the Obama administration put on Trump during his campaign was a Management Engine bug.
然而，较新的计算机在设计上是不可移动的间谍软件，是的，美国国家安全局可以监控任何带有管理引擎的机器。实际上甚至有传言称，奥巴马政府领导下的联邦调查局在特朗普竞选期间对他进行的窃听之一是管理引擎的错误。

Note that AMD (Ryzen) processors have what they call a "Platform Security Processor" that is equivalent to the Intel Management Engine, so you're not escaping the issue by using one of them.
请注意，AMD （Ryzen） 处理器具有他们所谓的“平台安全处理器”，相当于英特尔管理引擎，因此您无法通过使用其中之一来逃避问题。

NVIDIA 英伟达

Again, unless you play modern videos alone all day, you literally have no reason to have a modern computer, especially one with an expensive graphics card. NVIDIA is a great example because they make graphics cards and develop proprietary drivers for them to make it harder and harder to use them on machines that aren't running whatever the most recent spyware variant of Windows 10 is. Linux works perfectly on all computers ancient and modern, but if you plug some NVIDIA thing up to it, you might lose your screen or not be able to boot. A lot of gaymers whine about their NVIDIA products "not working" on Linux without realizing that is by design. NVIDIA and other companies and all CPU designers go out of their way to keep their source code and standards private which makes their products tangibly worse because it is harder for other parties to write drivers for them. Why? Because most of them have partnerships with Microsoft.
同样，除非您整天独自播放现代视频，否则您实际上没有理由拥有一台现代计算机，尤其是配备昂贵显卡的计算机。NVIDIA 就是一个很好的例子，因为他们制造显卡并为他们开发专有驱动程序，使在不运行 Windows 10 的最新间谍软件变体的机器上使用它们变得越来越困难。Linux 在所有古代和现代计算机上都能完美运行，但是如果您将一些 NVIDIA 的东西插入其中，您可能会丢失屏幕或无法启动。许多同性恋者抱怨他们的 NVIDIA 产品在 Linux 上“无法运行”，却没有意识到 这是设计使然 。NVIDIA 和其他公司以及所有 CPU 设计人员都竭尽全力将他们的源代码和标准保密，这使他们的产品变得明显更糟，因为其他方更难为他们编写驱动程序。为什么？因为他们中的大多数都与 Microsoft 建立了合作伙伴关系。

The Problem of WindowsWindows 的问题

How many times have you heard a normie explain to you that their computer is slow because it's "really old" and they bought it "way back in 2015?" It's an absurd statement of course. Computers don't just get magically slow... ...unless they've been running Windows.
你有多少次听到一个普通人向你解释他们的电脑很慢，因为它“真的很旧”，而且他们“早在 2015 年就买了它”？当然，这是一个荒谬的说法。计算机不仅会变得神奇地慢.........除非他们一直在运行 Windows。

In the future, once even Microsoft has switched over to a purely Unix-based backend for their operating system, we're all going to have a good laugh about how Microsoft Windows, literally the worst and least functioning operating system ever devised, was the largest consumer market share for decades.
未来，一旦 Microsoft 为其作系统切换到纯基于 Unix 的后端，我们都会开怀大笑 Microsoft Windows，实际上 是有史以来最糟糕和功能最差的作系统 ，如何成为几十年来最大的消费者市场份额。

I might go into how Windows is poorly designed in another page or video, but I want to be clear that there is no such loss of speed on any Linux distribution, which is what you should be using. I am one of the first to complain about the feature bloat of the Linux kernel and Linux software, but compared to Windows, it's no contest: Linux runs fast on old hardware. You'll know from some of my videos, however, that I'm not big into "Linux Evangelism," mostly because it's sort of strident and doesn't really work with a high success rate. Using Linux is just something that normies have been immunized against (mostly because "It's what smart people do"), but I always find myself in a position where someone's Window installation has permanently crashed and they're at the awkward decision of having to buy a license to reinstall the dysfunctional and slow operating system they've grown to hate.
我可能会在另一个页面或视频中讨论 Windows 设计不佳的原因，但我想明确一点，在任何 Linux 发行版上都没有这样的速度损失，这是您应该使用的。我是最早抱怨 Linux 内核和 Linux 软件功能膨胀的人之一，但与 Windows 相比，这毫无争议： Linux 在旧硬件上运行得很快 。然而，你会从我的一些视频中知道， 我不太喜欢 “Linux 布道”，主要是因为它有点刺耳，而且成功率并不高。使用 Linux 只是普通人已经免疫的东西（主要是因为“这是聪明人所做的”），但我总是发现自己处于某人的 Window 安装永久崩溃的境地，他们做出了尴尬的决定，必须 购买许可证 来重新安装他们已经讨厌的功能失调且缓慢的作系统。

There is quite literally no problem that normal people have with computers that is not immediately alleviated by installing Linux.
从字面上看，普通人使用计算机时没有通过安装 Linux 立即缓解的问题。

Why do people use ThinkPads?人们为什么使用 ThinkPad？

As I said above, I use a X220 ThinkPad. Older ThinkPads are fairly popular among people who think and care about doing things effectively and economically on a computer. Why is this?
正如我上面所说，我使用 X220 ThinkPad。较旧的 ThinkPad 在那些思考和关心在计算机上有效且经济地做事的人中相当受欢迎。这是为什么呢？

ThinkPads were always designed for enterprise environments, meaning the financial incentives for the manufacturer are not always planned obsolesce, but a long-standing reputation among large companies of having durable, fixable and expandable machines.
ThinkPad 始终是为企业环境设计的，这意味着制造商的经济激励并不总是计划过时，而是在大公司中长期享有拥有耐用、可修复和可扩展机器的声誉。

To replace a hard drive on the X200 requires unscrewing just a single screw. Same to replace the memory. To replace a spoiled keyboard is no more than three screws. Modern laptops, including the degraded modern ThinkPad have abandoned this simplicity and opt for the Apple-Mac/cell phone design technique of making batteries, memory and the rest functionally soldered and irremovable.
要更换 X200 上的硬盘驱动器，只需拧下一颗螺丝即可。更换内存相同。更换变质的键盘不超过三个螺丝。现代笔记本电脑，包括退化的现代 ThinkPad，已经放弃了这种简单性，并选择了 Apple-Mac/手机设计技术，使电池、内存和其他部分在功能上焊接且不可拆卸。

How far can $500 go?500 美元能走多远？

Over the years, I’ve had many things break on my laptops, but since I’ve been using ThinkPads, it is incredibly easy to keep a working computer even after rough use. I estimate that I have never spent more than a combined total of $500 on computers, which is usually a bare minimum for what someone can buy a “modern” laptop for nowadays.
多年来，我的笔记本电脑上有很多东西坏了，但自从我一直在使用 ThinkPad 以来，即使在粗暴使用后也能保持计算机正常工作非常容易。我估计我在电脑上的总花费从未超过 500 美元，这通常是当今人们可以购买一台“现代”笔记本电脑的最低限度。

When the keyboard on my ThinkPad breaks, I can just buy a replacement keyboard for $30 or $40 and replace the old one much easier than any other model. That’s the modularity of these computers.
当我的 ThinkPad 上的键盘坏了时，我只需花 30 美元或 40 美元购买替换键盘，然后更换旧键盘比任何其他型号都容易得多。这就是这些计算机的模块化。

Even in the worst case scenario when something on the motherboard makes the computer unbootable, I still get to keep my “broken” ThinkPad and repurpose the memory, wifi card, keyboard and everything else. I still have some parts of every laptop I’ve had just because they do come in a lot of use. The other month, a friend’s wifi on his desktop went out and I could replace it with one of my old ThinkPad modules.
即使在最坏的情况下，主板上的东西导致计算机无法启动，我仍然可以保留我“损坏”的 ThinkPad，并重新利用内存、wifi 卡、键盘和其他所有东西。我仍然保留我拥有的每台笔记本电脑的某些部件，因为它们确实经常使用。前一个月，一个朋友桌面上的 wifi 坏了，我可以用我的一个旧 ThinkPad 模块替换它。

This is the kind of thing you lose with modern computers. This is purposeful on the part of manufacturers, and it’s important not to pay them huge amounts of money to incentivize this behavior. It’s very easy to live off of 10 year old computers nowadays. The eBay-and-etc resale market is massive even thought many of us have gotten wise to the value of these old computers.
这是现代计算机所失去的那种东西。这是制造商有目的的，重要的是不要向他们支付巨额资金来激励这种行为。如今，靠 10 年旧的电脑生活非常容易。eBay 等转售市场非常庞大，即使认为我们中的许多人已经意识到这些旧计算机的价值。