I love reusing old tech like this. People toss / sell at a loss a lot of stuff that has quite a bit of use left in it.

You can buy x86 mini PCs for less now with only a minor hit to power consumption (they use slightly more power). I used to love Pis for home labbing, but I have switched to mini PCs for it.

This is where the real science is at.

Same. Plus the effort to reward was often very minimal. Most of my best relationships are / were friends that we decided it would be mutually beneficial to add more “nuance” to the relationship. :)

I feel you on this one. Plus the expense of everything these days has also largely pushed me out as well.