My hard drive is over ten and a half months old, slightly different from the 8.3 months I calculated. So, this method only gives an estimate which may differ from the actual age.

Even when an old computer won’t start up anymore, the hard drive is still in there. From financial data to private photos, that drive could hold all sorts of private information.

The original hard drive icon dates back to 2000, when Apple introduced the new look and feel of Mac OS X to the public ...

Is your old PC a security risk? Find out how to protect it or give it a new life with Linux, turning it into a media server or backup station.

This backup can be stored on an external hard drive or a network location, making it easier to restore your data and settings on the new computer. For Mac users, the Time Machine feature serves a ...

The light is still on it (it is a Seagate Free Agent hard drive, probably 10 years old or so), but it no longer makes any noise. Of course, I have all my pictures and financials on there.

You can also use an old computer as a security camera, if it has a webcam attached. iSpy is the program you need for this, and it'll let you record footage to the old computer's hard drive as well ...

If you're planning on getting rid of an old computer, make sure you remove the hard drive first and smash it up with a hammer, a British consumer group advised on Thursday.