Modern Computer Minimalism

Most of us don't need a liquid cooled CPU, GPU, RAM or disk drive.

Every few days I see the eye-watering specs on gaming computers. I see “stories” posing as “news” that are thinly disguised ads for gaming computers.

I see the memory with heat sink fins. I see the solid state disks with heat sink fins, too. CPUs already have fans. Power supplies are now up to 1500 watts on high end computers.

And all of that is for a better experience in a virtual world, at the expense of the real world.

I’m not a gamer. I’ve had a lost weekend with Golf Clash and that was enough for me. Although I can see why people might like gaming, every time I play a game, I lose track of the real world.

I’m not a graphic artist. I’m not a video editor. I’m not running a render farm. I’m not a mechanical engineer designing a high rise. I’m just a guy who likes to write on computers. So I choose minimalism.

A couple decades ago, I read something that stuck with me. After the Intel 486 processor (that was back in the days when 16 megabytes of memory was a lot), we never needed anything more for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and a browser.

Modern productivity apps operate just fine on some pretty low powered CPUs. And now, all of the productivity apps from Microsoft run pretty well in a browser. And they run pretty much the same in all the major browsers on Mac, Windows, ChromeOS or Linux.

Google Workspace kicked off the trend of running office apps in a browser. Microsoft quickly followed behind. Today, there are multiple office suites that run entirely in a web browser.

Back in 2007, I stopped using Windows. I didn’t have to stop using Windows. I wanted to stop using Windows.

I had read articles about the antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft, saw video of Bill Gates hedging on his testimony and learned that Microsoft was doing everything it could to kill off other browsers and operating systems. I wanted to get off that train.

One thing I’ve noticed about Windows is that it runs pretty much the same regardless of the power of the CPU. And it always seemed to run slower every year. That was because Microsoft was always adding layer upon layer of security. Microsoft was protecting an old, outdated programming philosophy of closed source, proprietary software.

So one day back in 2007, I found myself with a spare computer besides the one I used for my daily driver. I made sure there was nothing I wanted to save on that spare computer. Then I downloaded a copy of Ubuntu Linux and installed it. Then I started using Ubuntu Linux.

I copied all my files from my old computer to my refurbished computer. I found analogues to the software I was familiar with. OpenOffice to replace Microsoft Office. Firefox to replace Internet Explorer. Rythmbox to replace Winamp. Thunderbird to replace Outlook.

I decided was going to use Linux until I bumped into something that made me want to go back to Windows. Somehow, that day never came. I made that transition and never needed to go back to Windows.

I managed just fine on Ubuntu Linux just fine until I found laptops that ran Google’s ChromeOS. This was a browser operating system, meaning that everything is done through a browser, Chrome. I had already been using Gmail. Then I discovered Google Docs and Sheets. I began to notice that I could do almost everything that I needed to in a browser.

And I did all of that with a cheap, low powered CPU, the Intel i3. And my Chromebook had no fan. There was no spinning disk drive. It was a solid state drive, or SSD. And it was so thin and light…It didn’t have a network port, it used only WiFi.

Much later, I found docking stations that worked great with my Chromebook, converting it from a laptop to a workstation computer.

In my present day job, 95% of what I do for work is in a browser. I can run Outlook, Word, and Excel in Microsoft Edge. I use a browser to work in all of the in-house applications built by the company I work for. The browser is just an interface to a database, and most of the grunt work is done on servers in a data center.

Several recent studies estimate that by 2030, 90% of our work, worldwide, in every context, will be done in a browser. I believe those studies. Even now, most of the work I do personally, not in the context of my day job, is done in a browser. Substack is an app that runs in a browser, too.

One of the consequences of these trends is that we don’t really need that much CPU for our computers. Or RAM, even though the complexity of browsers continues to grow. Most of the demand for RAM is from Artificial Intelligence, not browsers or apps.

I recently bought a new computer that had Windows on it. I spent about 6 hours just trying to get Windows up to date. My goal was to make an installation disk once I was done.

Then I discovered that the manufacturer made Windows images for each of their products available for download. I was just thinking that if I didn’t like the computer, I’d have to return it with the original image intact.

Once I found the disk images provided by the manufacturer, I blew away Windows and installed Linux. Then I ran updates. Then I used it for a few days to test it.

This new computer was significant to me in one particular way. I was using a Celeron processor from Intel. It was a an Intel N150. I’m using that CPU on this computer now as my daily workhorse.

I found that its performance was indistinguishable from a much faster processor. Most the work that I do these days does not require any heavy lifting.

The Linux apps I use the most load instantly: LibreOffice, Chrome and the terminal (like the Windows Command Prompt). The advantage that Linux has over Windows is that Linux just never slows down.

Another advantage of Linux is that so much hardware support has been built into Linux that it will run on just about anything with no issues. I have a 10 year old Precision workstation from Dell. Linux runs fine on that machine, just as well as the new machine I got for a $194. I don’t have to spend $1500 or even $700 on a new computer.

I can use an older computer and I’m fine. Most Linux desktops run fine on older hardware, too.

In a few short months - October - millions of computers will no longer receive updates for Windows 10. All of those computers will eventually become too unsafe to use with Windows 10, and they won’t support Windows 11.

This computer that I’m using now, with an N150 CPU came with a Windows license. I didn’t use it. I know all the headaches that come with Windows and I know it’s not worth the effort for me to maintain Windows compared to Linux. I have been able to replace every function that I’ve used Windows for, with free, open source software on Linux.

The computer I run now runs on 19 volts. It has a tiny, very quiet fan. It does what I need it to do without issues, without complaints.

If you would like to go the low power route, consider the following, new or used:

• Look for a Next Unit of Computing box (NUC). These computers all run small power supplies with low powered CPUs. Example brands include:

  • GMKtec

  • Geekom

  • Minisforum

• You can also use refurbished micro sized computers:

  • Dell Optiplex Micro

  • Lenovo Micro Desktop

  • HP Elite Micro Desktop

• Multiple vendors offer refurbished PCs:

  • BackMarket

  • Amazon Renewed

  • Walmart Refurbished

  • HP, Dell and Lenovo all offer refurbished models, too.

A new computer with Windows can easily be found for less than $500, often for less than $300. A decent used and certified computer can be found for less than $200. And all of them will run Linux.

Buying and using a refurbished computer is one of the best forms of recycling. You save some money. You save some energy. You learn something about computers if you want to. Linux is a great way to learn how computers work by just using it. And you keep more junk out of the landfills.

Replacing Windows 10 with Linux is another way to recycle a computer. With some care and maybe some help from someone you trust, you can backup your stuff, install a new operating system and copy your stuff back to the new operating system.

There is one other thing to consider about Linux: it’s open source software and it’s not owned by any single person or company. It’s free to download and to share. Linux is a utility operating system that is perfectly suited for “recycling” computers.

Write on.