I have been interested in Sun technology for years. I have used Sun boxes for email, dns, ssh and web servers, as well as firewalls. I have used them as development platforms for C, C++, Java, perl and bash shell scripting. I have also used them for database servers running Oracle, MySQL and PostGreSQL, as well as Quake 2 clients and game servers. I have administrated these servers running Solaris 7 thru Solaris 10.
I've collected quite a few boxes, appliances and parts. It's funny how expensive Sun technology is when it's new and how dirt cheap it can get when it's obsolete. Unlike my vintage S-100 bus computer, these boxes don't have any real value after a certain point, probably because Sun made so many of everything. Some boxes that used to cost tens of thousands end up costing $25 to $75 as scrap. How cool is that!!
One of my favorite sources for Sun stuff used to be the Boeing Surplus Store in Kent, WA. Unfortunately, they closed to the public in December 2007. And while they still run a virtual auction website, they don't sell the cool Sun technology on the auctions anymore; they found a company that buys all the good stuff under contract. So now it's either Craigslist or eBay.
I got some other Sun boxes from a Denver based consultancy that was on the verge of bankruptcy. They were selling off most of their technology assets to pay their employees' salaries. I felt compelled to help out :-) I bought a lot of monitors, servers, workstations and parts for near firesale prices. The company is now completely bankrupt. (I guess they ran out of hardware...)
Overall, the Sun boxes have always proven to be strong workhorse machines. Even full of dust and in hot and cold climates, they keep running. I've had some boxes (running Solaris) up for over a year without a reboot. They make a great platform to learn about enterprise computing technology and administration as well as learning about computer architectures that ARE NOT PC BASED. I was very pleased that these boxes would not boot Windows :-) 64 bit Unix all the way!
I have recently sold off most of my Sun equipment. I'm down to 7 boxes now. I've recently become interested in Apple technology and am needing some funds to buy a Mac Mini and a Macbook Air. We already have an iMac, an iPad and a Macbook Pro, plus 3 iPhones. I will always keep a few Sun boxes around to handle the basics, but the newer Apple technology is intriguing to me and I want to learn more about it.
Page created November 22, 2009
Page updated February 5, 2024