Stubbie and Dartag,
Reading this thread cracks me up. I have always been a packrat, my wife polar opposite, so the need to collect is somewhat tempered. I have every computer I've ever owned (including a DEC VT100 and UDS tone generating modem I used to use to dial into the PDP11-70 - sometimes to get it connected I had to wistle into the handset to get it to sync up - bad copper I think). I love books - I can't step out of the house without one in my briefcase or back pocket, so I have thousands. Cables - well, I used to build all my own, so I have enough copper to mint my own coins, being a 3rd generation Baby Bell'er - I really should visit the scrap yard and see what I can get for it.
I have been musing (after reading Joe's PC-TV thread), about digitizing all media - books, pictures, music, movies, games, etc. Costs for hardware have come down to the point where this is feasible. Just a thought...