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title: "Introduction"
type: Chapter
slug: true
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>> The real long-term future of computing consists of figuring out how to make the best possible use we can out of the literal millions of devices which already exist.
(Solderpunk, 2020, Cited in de Valk, 2022)
You’re reading[^shortcut-print] *A Field Guide for Salvaging Sound Devices*. Here we'll explore the practical side of salvage computing: is it possible to *live off* (create with) electronic components salvaged in the wild? And what would such a practice entail? Instead of using hardware to build even more computers, we are focussing on creating dreamy drones sound boxes.
Salvaging is the practice of using computational resources that already exist. Not freshly purchased hardware, but salvaged from landfills and hidden in storage boxes. According to the E-Waste Monitor, our e-waste production is growing rapidly, and even doubling between 2010 and 2022. However, the rate at which the waste is collected and recycled is not growing at the same rate, resulting in landfills that just keep growing and growing.[@baldeGlobalEWasteMonitor]
According to Jennifer Gabrys, salvage is not just about reusing materials, but also about confronting the systems that created the waste in the first place [@gabrysSalvage2012]. Waste is not created trough consumer discards, but a by product of all the steps from mining the minerals needed in hardware to disposal. These actions material transisitions take place in hazardous waste sites that cause major long-term environmental and health problems [@calmaWomenWhoMade2025], often in developing countries where technology consumption is much lower.
The growing gap between recycling and production is explained by our increased consumption of technology, limited repair options and lack of e-waste infrastructure.
[^shortcut-print]: Ctrl + P to print this document
This notion of buying new is visible in the DIY Synth community as well [^GAS]. When publishing about a project it’s common practice to share a pre-filled webshop cart along with the schematics, or even sold as a KIT[^KIT]. To me, this goes against a core ethos of DIY, where you make do a limited budget resources [@hertzArtDIYElectronics2023]. Instead, a whole new market is created of buying pre-made lego-like kits, that do not talk about the creative process of building and brush over the difficulty of electronics, causing us not to develo-p the much needed problem solving skills [@CooperativeExperimentalismSharing].
[^KIT]: Example of a kit
This is where my interpretation of salvaging could come into play.
”Salvage computing believes that the end of a computer product’s lifecycle should be seen as a moment of celebration”[@lulinvegaHolisticApproachComputing]. Instead of noting down a time of death, the obsolete device could be the start of something new. Trough this thesis & project, I want to challenge my own idea that buying new hardware is quicker then salvaging for hardware. This thesis will be a field guide for the salvaging from- and reusing of abandoned/obsolete media, to create sound devices.
The guide is split up into four chapters describing the different stages of salvaging for sound devices:
1. Gathering hardware
*We’ll go through which devices work best for salvaging, where can they be found, dealing with hording, hidden waste streams*
2. Dismantling devices
*Tools & tricks for dismantling devices and breaking it down into smaller parts, dealing with strategies companies employ to keep you out of their devices*
3. Components to salvage
*An overview of parts, where they are, how to reuse them, and the difficulties that come along with it*
4. Recipes for making
*Strategies for re-making with salvaged parts*
5. *extra* Buy in bulk > wat te doen met je nieuwe zooi? => reflectie
*Cleaning up afterward, a look back into if this was actually a good idea.*
## Do It With Others (DIWO)
Within the DIY Sound community, DIWO workshops are a common way of sharing knowledge [@richardsDIYElectronicMusic2013], similarly to repair, which is a historically social activity, where skills are passed by the generations. Fixing your bike is a very dad type thing. By joining & hosting workshops and gatherings around repair and repurposing, I’ve noticed how empowering it can be to take back this autonomy. This guide itself is created during and around so-called *(un)repair nights[^unrepair-night]* at the klankschool[^about-klankschool]. I would really encourage you to do DIWO this guide too. The frustrating process that can be learning electronics is much better to manage when shared.
[^unrepair-night]: Join every other thursday at klankschool, check the [calendar](https://calendar.klank.school/) for more information
[^about-klankschool]:[klankschool](https://klank.school) is a Rotterdam based community of sound practitioners and amateur repair people.
[^tinkering-methodologies]: TODO: Tinkering methodologies is coming from “Zombie Media: Circuit Bending Media Archaeology into an Art Method” although I don’t really know what to add about that here, even though I do want to mention it.
On that note, I am by no means and expert in electronics. When I write about how things work, please take it with a grain of salt. It's 'my' logic, and i'm sure it's full of incorrect assumptions. If you have improvements, feel free to reach out, or create a pull request with your improvements.
# To fix
positiviere angle repair van [@jacksonRethinkingRepair2014]
## Oud
Feedback: er staat nu nog niets over how to print
Opruimen die handel!
Dit kan weg? A big reason for this increasing amount of waste is, surprise, the amount of technology being created. My *innovative* electric tooth has Bluetooth. And with issues like lack of repairability, topped off with a whiff of technological obsolescence (more on that later), but it causes us to want shiny new instead of used and old, you get a hazardous e-waste cocktail that's hard to swallow.