Have an old PC sitting around collecting dust and don’t know what to do with it? You’re not alone.
The main reason most people procrastinate on this, beside not knowing where to take them, is fear of someone getting their 
hands on their personal data. As a lot of you know, whether your operating system doesn’t boot, your motherboard is fried, or you video card is bad, the data on your hard drive is still very much in tact. That can be a pretty vast amount of personal data that is really anyone’s for the taking once you get rid of it.
The simplest way to deal with that, really, is to pull the hard drive out before you get rid of it. Now, I now what your thinking: “Easy for the computer repair guy to say!”. But it’s really not that hard. On a desktop PC, you (generally) just remove two thumbscrews from the back of the PC.
From there you’re going to look for a something that looks like what is pictured below and to the right. Then, unplug both cables going to it, and remove it. Removing it can be as simple and pinching two clips and sliding out (most Dells), or removing a 
few screws that are attaching it.
On a laptop, it’s even easier. You just need a small Philips head screwdriver. Look for a little icon that looks like a small cylinder on the bottom of the laptop, remove the cover closest to that little icon, and you’re only a couple of screws away from peace of mind.
Now, what do you do with your recently anonymized computer? Goodwill is always a good resource. Not to mention it’s a write-off! Other options are Craigslist, Freecycle, or a good old fashion garage sale.
