What do people do with their old, out of date but still useful computers? Most people don’t know how to deal with them. Many old computers are put away. Many more are simply thrown away as rubbish.

Finally, some companies are thinking of ways to bring down the number of old computers. Sony has agreed to help recycle old Sony products (产品). Dell, Hewlett Packard and other companies now also take back some old computers of their own brands.

In some countries, laws have been passed, too. Computer companies have to pay for collecting and recycling their used products. And 70% of the computer waste must be recycled. The idea behind the laws is that computer companies themselves should pay for the cost. That will encourage them to make computers which are easier and cheaper to repair and upgrade (升级).

Yet many people are throwing away good computers, while others cannot afford them at all. Hundreds of organizations are working on this problem. They collect and repair old computers. Some also teach others how to repair computers. These repaired computers then go to schools, charities (慈善团体) or people who need them. Giving a used computer to one of these organizations can turn one person’s rubbish into someone else’s useful things and cut down waste, too.

The computer is a very good machine. It can do a lot of work every day, so people can use it in many ways. Writers can use it to write interesting stories. Painters can use it to draw beautiful pictures. If you like talking: you can talk to people far away on the computer. You can watch movies and listen to music. Many children like playing games. Computers can help you.

In the shop, someone buys something from you. You can put in the information about the sale. Then the computer can work on the information and tell you a report (报告) about shopping. In research (在研究领域), if you want to know about the moon, you can ask the computer and the computer can answer on the screen. In some large factories, you can’t see many people. Why not? Robots can do most of the work instead of (代替) people. How does the robot work? The computer tells it what to do. This is our computer. Maybe one day the computer can think and feel. Then it will make our life better and better.

Anvitha Vgay, 9, can build an app. With the help of You Tube videos, the young techies from Melbourne, Australia, learned to code (编程) at age 7. Soon, she was trying her hand at making apps. “When I first got my iPad, I was fascinated by all the apps on it,” she said, “It wasn’t long before I wanted to create my own.” She built her first two apps with her younger sister in mind. Smartkins Animals helps children identify (识别) more than 100 animals and their sounds. Smartkins Rainbow Colors teaches kids colors. Each app has been downloaded thousands of times.