Is there a place for old tech in the 21st Century? Published duration 26 May 2016

It might have been the general consensus that the floppy disk, which was big in the 1980s, had had its day - but after the US government's revelation that the technology remains in use at the Pentagon, enthusiasts wonder whether there is still a place for old tech in today's hi-tech world?

Dan Hatfull, Kent

image copyright Dan Hatfull

I am a pilot, and I understand the role of new equipment allied with old stuff that, in my life at least, still has a role to play in life.

I have a Sharp VHS recorder purchased in 1999 in my drawing room, and an Aiwa hi-fi stack system, all still going strong.

image copyright Dan Hatfull

I have cassettes from when I was a child in the 80s.

I am proud to say I still use video cassettes and vinyl, and have a huge record collection, supplemented by CDs to play in the car.

image copyright Dan Hatfull

I get disillusioned with this throwaway society where once something is not fashionable anymore it's discarded.

I don't see why serviceable films on VHS from the 80s have to be digitally re-mastered, so that people must replace their video collection with DVDs.

image copyright Dan Hatfull

Then, we have to do the same thing again with Blu-ray, and replaced again with downloads.

I don't like waste.

What I don't see is why I need to keep changing my collections because of marketers and society - it's nonsensical.

Mark Partridge, London

image copyright Mark Partridge

I bought my 1972 Akai 4000D player about a year ago from eBay and reconditioned it.

I'm an enthusiast and collect equipment like that.

You get 45 minutes on each reel, and it is very high-fidelity.

It still provides much (easy) listening pleasure.

Richard McKenzie, Australia

image copyright Richard McKenzie

I use the Apple Extended Keyboard II on my home computer as my main keyboard.

I write quite a bit for my day job and for pleasure, and I feel much more productive typing on a keyboard like this.

The only thing is that they are loud compared to more recent types; everybody in the house knows when I'm typing.

But that's a small price to pay for the pleasure of a mechanical keyboard.

Technological progress isn't always for the better, and our desire to have computers (and smartphones) as compact as possible has meant that keyboard design has suffered.

James Clephane-Cameron, Surrey

image copyright James Clephane-Cameron

I collect and restore old British computers.

In the 1980s and 1990s the UK was a world leader in computing, developing the ARM processor which now runs in almost all smartphones.

The systems still have their uses. Everything from music notation to complex mathematics.

I use mine to teach my children about computing and to help them understand how modern computers work.