The Happy Ordi Project
Happy Ordi is a software project aimed at organisations and individuals interested in making computers last, optimising them and reconditioning them, as well as those interested in supporting us in this approach.
Happy Ordi is a project designed to save as many computers as possible from the scrap heap.
The aim is to ensure that computers continue to be usable for everyday needs and can last for several more years, both to save money and to reduce the impact on the environment.
The project, which is currently under development, has already been built in the form of a ready-to-use operating system serving as a proof of concept. It will be distributed under a free open source licence and will be provided in Live (demonstration) mode only.
Without prejudging what our readers understand about the world of computing, those who are unfamiliar with terms such as Operating System, or Linux Distributions, will find at the end of this page, a small glossary with some frequently used computing terms.
What is Happy Ordi
Happy Ordi consists of a Linux operating system with a main (windowed) graphical program, which provides the functional status of the computer and precise information on its potentially replaceable components.
We also plan to add an application to test the storage devices and another one to test the system memory.
It will be provided with documentation, and depending on your needs, we will offer remote assistance if you need additional help with usage, or to choose and research replacement components for hardware optimization purposes.
Why Linux?
We make use of Linux distributions for our day-to-day needs as well as for testing computers of all ages, even those running Windows XP. This can lead us to process computers of various ages, up to 20 years old when they are good brands and models.
GNU/Linux live systems
GNU/Linux distributions, in demonstration mode, can be used as a temporary system, called “Live”, and can eventually be installed later.
Being able to demonstrate an Operating System on a target computer is always interesting, it can allow one to assess its snappiness while in use.
From there, several projects thought it would be a good idea to use it in Live mode for testing, troubleshooting, and diagnostics, and several projects have provided ready-to-use Linux distributions with large numbers of applications included for these purposes.
Why create yet another tool
Its creation is a simplified version of the approach we’ve been using for years to determine the potential of our customers’ computers, and the idea revealed itself on the basis of a few observations:
-
- Most breakdowns are caused by the storage device and or the operating system
- Many computers are stored away waiting to be thrown away, due to slowdowns
- Users are often unaware that their PCs can be upgraded to higher-performance components, often at low cost.
- Users often lack training in the basics around usage and maintenance of their computer hardware
- Knowledge related to command lines and the use of a terminal is not widespread
- Reconditioning facilities are overloaded and send a large number of computers which can still be reused for dismantling
- Not all facilities can afford expensive diagnostic software licenses
Diagnostics and Live systems
In the case of a computer to be diagnosed, a live USB, or a live CD running a Linux distribution can be used to evaluate the computer without running the system installed within: it works just as the storage disk and its operating system would.
What makes creating or rebuilding a custom Linux distribution possible is the free licence which comes along.
Most Linux distributions come with free licences, which grant extensive rights, including the right to use the software for any purpose, on any compatible computer without restriction, the right to modify the code to adapt it to our needs, and the right to redistribute it (free or for a fee, with or without associated services).
The maturity of Linux distributions dedicated to workstations also offers essential qualities, of stability, security, and enable us to deliver systems both easy to use and nice looking.
We produce too much we throw away too much
The main project is therefore to help individuals and organisations alike to slow down the need to purchase new computers and increase the significantly the number of machines saved from destruction.
On one hand, our Earth planet is now crowded with junk, in which electronics, among which computers is not the least part.
On the other hand, the computer industry has reached a level where almost everyone has at least one computer at home, and often more. Yet, every day billions of new PCs continue to be built, causing ever more pollution through upstream manufacturing, downstream recycling, which is very imperfect and also polluting, when it exists, and the accumulation of waste in open dumps in various countries around the world.
It also happens that organizations continue changing computer hardware which is still in very good condition or can be brought back to good use, and we need to stress this point: meanwhile, the pollution coming from mining and the pollution added to landfills continues to increase.
The Happy Ordi way
Happy Ordi makes it easy to carry out diagnostics on computers, unlike most of the other tools available.
It is easier to use than most diagnostic software: we limited the number of test programs on purpose, in order to meet most cases for a successful refurbishment.
Conventional software available on the Internet, on the other hand, often provides a wide range of tools, without any associated documentation, and without it always being clear what they are for and how to use them.
A practical and educational tool
Happy Ordi has limited features, and sometimes it won’t allow us to resolve a malfunction: its first purpose is it to allow checking the general state of health of a computer. When the computer is actually able to start up until the desktop appears on the screen, it is clear that it is working.
From this point on we can easily obtain information about its main components, which in turn allows us to discover possible hardware optimisations.
We aim to retrieve just the information needed for hardware optimisation purposes, and not more. This allows for an access to essential information at a glance. In the example above, in addition to the specifications for the motherboard, processor and RAM, the program also provided information on the sound card, network card and storage peripherals, which is generally enough to test the most important features.
Once we know what hardware optimisations are possible, it is also easier to advise or supply a GNU/Linux operating system among the ones most suitable for the computer tested and in accordance to the user’s needs, always with the durability and ease of use in mind.
A concrete example
Here’s what it can look like for a desktop computer with an MSI 770T-C45 motherboard:
| Designation | Value | Possible upgrades |
| Brand | MSI | |
| Model | 770T-C45 | |
| BIOS Access | Suppr Key | v 8.7 2010-09-03 |
| Boot choice | F11 Key | |
| CPU | AMD Athlon II x2 250 3.00 GHz (TDP 65w) |
|
| Socket(s) | AM2+ | |
| RAM type(s) | DDR2 x 4 (8Go max) | 533/ 667/ 800/ 1066 SDRAM |
| Suggested GNU/Linux distributions (Lightest first) |
|
|
| Usages |
|
|
|  Stockage |  Disque Dur SATA 3,5″ |  SSD SATA 2,5″ |
| URL | https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/770TC45 |
In this table we have added two lines of information for the USB boot method, which may be useful to share.
The processor had 2 cores, now it has 4 cores, and the system memory supplied with DDR2 modules, now more than deprecated even by refurbishers, has been increased from 4 GB to 8 GB. The list of suggested Linux distributions takes into account the relative power of the computer and the preferences of the specifiers and their users, who will be able to test them and choose from several styles of environments.
The table does not include a graphics card, as the motherboard does not have a graphics chipset (those who are more curious can consult the manual containing the technical information available at this address: M7388v3.1.zip). An external AMD Radeon HD 7870 graphics card (connected to the PCI-Express port) has been added.
This motherboard came out in 2009, so it’s over 15 years old.
Although considered obsolete, the computer it is equipped with works perfectly for the common uses listed in this table: changing the RAM and processor, using an SSD disk and installing a lightweight Linux distribution are the ingredients for its successful return to service.
So wether the operator of the Happy Ordi system is an experienced DIY enthusiast, a technician working in a repair or re-use structure, or a repair café facilitator, he or she will be able to acquire the basics needed to address the most commonly encountered problems.
Or in the case of experienced technicians, they will take advantage of a system designed to simplify this check and research stage.
Depending on their needs and wishes, they will then be able to go further in the search for the causes of faults and malfunctions with other, more complex software.
To process more computers
Happy Ordi helps us deal with the most frequent cases: corrupted file systems, storage devices that are failing or starting to fail, fragmented hard disks on old computers, and insufficient system memory or processor power.
Observing the behaviour of even relatively old computers, but running a functional and optimised operating system, provides in just a few minutes a key indicator of the value in use of the hardware in question.
Combined with the additional knowledge of possible hardware optimisations and their cost, this provides an additional indicator for getting computers back into good working order, even those over 15 years old.
By providing software that can be used by individuals and organisations to carry out quick and easy diagnostics on as wide a range of computers as possible, whatever the operators’ level of technical know-how, we aim to help reduce the need for new hardware and help organisations make their equipment last longer.
What about reconditioning companies?
The majority of refurbishing centres sort computers according to restrictive criteria such as the age of the hardware, the version of Windows that ran it, or even the RAM modules before DDR4, and send computers that can still be used for years to be dismantled.
Dismantling for recycling is known to have a much greater impact on the environment than reconditioning, which is designed to make hardware last.
Not all equipment is eligible for refurbishment, and for those that are, recycling is essential.
On the left recycling – On the right refurbishing
Here are some figures. We cannot guarantee their accuracy, but they provide an order of magnitude:
Recycling
Greenhouse gas emissions: 1.4 kg carbon equivalent / Unit
Energy consumption: 1.2 kWh / Unit
Not all recovered materials can be recycled.
Reconditioning
Greenhouse gas emissions: 0.3 kg carbon equivalent / Unit
Energy consumption: 0.5 kWh / Unit
Computers can be used for several more years.
Providing a solution that can be used by everyone, and in particular by associations and repair cafés, is one of the ways in which we can help to significantly reduce waste.
As far as possible, the idea is to get computers out of the cupboards, where they lie waiting for better days, and to prevent some of them from ending up in the dismantling channels when they can still be used as second or third hand computers.
Let’s refurbish joyfully
The name of the programme is Happy Ordi, (Happy and Ordi as an abreviation for Ordinateur, computer, in French) because once checked and optimised, the computer is happy to go on with its life.
Test and inventory a computer’s components
How it works
The program is installed on a bootable disk, such as a Live USB key, or even a Live CD, to boot the Linux operating system in which it is installed. Once the desktop is displayed on the screen (screenshot above), if the computer does not freeze or slow down, you can continue and double-click on the Tools icon.
This produces a file containing the information collected on the computer’s components.
Let’s remember that the system operates autonomously, without interfering with the computer’s internal system. It uses the system memory (RAM) and processor functions, from start-up to shutdown.
At no time does it require the installed operating system to be started.
You are an individual or a non profit organization
After double-clicking on the Desktop Tools icon, the window will prompt you to provide information such as your name and email address.
Then you will be invited to open a link to a web page from which you can send us the file containing the information produced by the program, in order for us to perform a search on possible hardware optimisation.
We will then get back to you with the information needed to upgrade the hardware with new components, depending on the make and model of your computer.
You are in an area off grid
Same as above, but you don’t have an internet connection at the moment. You can just add your name and mail address in the box, and close it before copying the “hardware.txt” file to another USB drive, so you can send us the file by mail later.
You are a repair cafe or a refurbisher
You want to use the information by yourself, thus you can rename your “hardware.txt” file with the name of the brand and model computer, or add any information relevant for you in the windowed box. Then you can retrieve the file using your local network, or another USB drive, as needed.
You wish to use it in another context
The program is free software under licence (GPLv3 , or aGPL). Therefore you can adapt it to your specific need, or ask us to do it for you, and we can study your request.
Glossary
Having often encountered these questions, I’m offering some definitions for a few computer terms used in this presentation.
- Operating system: A set of programs to make the computer work.
- Applications: The programs installed in the operating system allowing users to work, communicate, play, and create various products.
- Linux distributions: Operating systems, alternatives to Windows and macOS. Most often bundled with numerous applications, we name them “distributions.” They power most of the world’s servers and most of the internet and web infrastructure.
- Software: A generic term designating any intangible component that is part of an operating system, or functions within it, such as applications.(See also the definition of “Software” on Wikipedia.)
- Peripheral: in computing, a piece of hardware external to the computer, which can be connected to it (USB keys, printer, keyboard, etc.)
Refurbish or recycle ?
Here are some references on the issue of electronic waste, recycling, and repair.
- Why Reuse is Always the Best Option for IT Equipment
- The Environmental Impact of Repairing vs. Replacing Electronics
- Carbon Aware Computing vs Repair and Reuse: Which Is More Sustainable?
- Assessment of the environmental impact of a set of refurbished products
- Electronic waste (e-waste)
- Global e-Waste Monitor 2024: Electronic Waste Rising Five Times Faster than Documented E-waste Recycling
And a video report (in French) on the extraction of coltan (which is one of the strategic metals needed to manufacture electronic products), in a mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
- Kivu : descente dans les mines de coltan (Kivu : going down in the coltan mines)