G'day. This is all new to me and I have only browsed a few pages so my query may be already answered. I had a pile of old stuff like stereos, tape decks, faxes, printers etc, which I stripped and got all the parts out of them.
I retrieved ICs, resistors, LEDs, capacitors, pots, transistors,diodes, etc, etc, which I mostly unsoldered. I was worried that some of these might be useless after being salvaged, for instance, someone told me old capacitors are no good or unreliable. The units were 1 to 15 years old. I don't build computers, I just potter around with simple stuff. I made a 0-30v DC variable power supply from some recycled parts and it works OK. Are there any bits that are no good?