Please help us upgrade KPFA’s computers

Hello, world! I am coming to you with the tin cup in hand, asking for help once again. We’re looking to raise $1800 or more to improve the computer systems used by KPFA’s news people and others. Even if you aren’t a regular listener to KPFA, you can make a big difference with a small contribution. Ten, twenty, fifty dollars – whatever you can spare. More if you have it!

Here’s the story:

To save money and to reduce its contributions to the waste stream, KPFA replaces just the guts (motherboard, processor, RAM, and sometimes hard drive) of its computers. Unfortunately, because of tight money, this process has lagged behind KPFA’s needs. Because so much of our content is locally-produced, and we rely so heavily on unpaid staff, we maintain close to 50 computer workstations in the building.

We have identified ten computers that need a partial or complete upgrade so that they can perform the tasks we expect of our computers these days: record audio from streaming video without drop-outs; edit large audio files; and keep multiple programs open at the same time.

KPFA’s needs:

Ten of these motherboard/CPU/RAM combos and four of these hard drives.

If we can get them all, the two slowest computers in the New World office will get a full upgrade. Four computers in the Newsroom will get a full upgrade. We’ll upgrade computers in two on-air studios, and one intern computer. Those are all workstations heavily used by KPFA’s unpaid staff — who deserve, at a minimum, reliable equipment when they come in to do their part. KPFA’s engineers will do the installation work.

And if we get more, so much the better! There are other computers in less-critical places that could use an upgrade as well.

Here is a link for donations via PayPal:





If you’d prefer to send a check, please make it payable to KPFA and write “computer upgrade” in the memo field. Send to:

KPFA
Attn: Maria Negret
1929 Martin Luther King Jr Way
Berkeley CA 94704

I know there are a million causes demanding our attention and suport. It is always going to be like that. I’m putting this out there because it needs doing, and I appreciate any help you can give. KPFA is an important media, political, and cultural institution, and I am committed to keeping it healthy. Thank you for your kind attention.

1 thought on “Please help us upgrade KPFA’s computers”

Leave a Comment