By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Staff Writer

Q. I recently purchased a new computer and want to donate my old computer to a public school. But after hearing about how much information the hard drive retains even after deleting files, I'm very hesitant. Does the Department of Education have a specific cleaning procedure in place to ensure that a donor's personal information is not obtained from the hard drive?

A. State educators usually refer donors like you to the Hawai'i Computers for Kids Program, which is holding a community computer recycling day from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at CompUSA at 604 Ala Moana Blvd. The organization has teamed up with the state Department of Education, the city and CompUSA for the event.

Ken Goldstein, founder and executive director of the nonprofit organization, advises donors to wipe out personal data themselves, using a software program such as the "Wipe Info" tool in Norton Utilities or reformatting the hard drive (which he said is 99 percent effective.)

For the past 12 years, Goldstein has been working to recycle such computers and turn them over to public and private K-12 schools and other nonprofit organizations. He said he expects to recycle about 3,600 donated computers this year.

To be useful, the computers must be Windows-based Pentium II or faster, and PowerMac or faster. The organization also welcomes working monitors 17 inches and larger.

Donors who can't make it to the give-away Saturday can call Goldstein's organization at 521-2259. Older models or nonworking computer equipment also can be dropped off for recycling. For more information, call the city's recycling office at 692-5410 or visit www.opala.org.

Q. Is it legal for people to roller-skate on the sidewalk? I parked along Diamond Head Road recently to show my visitors from the Mainland how beautiful that area was, and out of nowhere came a woman in her 30s on inline skates. There were quite a few people on the sidewalk and she was extremely rude to all of us. Can she do that?

A. Yes, it is legal to skate on the sidewalk, except in Waikiki. The woman may have shown bad manners, but she wasn't breaking any laws. Police Sgt. Clyde Yamashiro said city ordinance allows people on skates, skateboards or even bicycles to ride on the sidewalk, except in Waikiki.

If you have a question or a problem and need help getting to the right person, you can reach The Bureaucracy Buster one of three ways:

Do you ever get frustrated or confused trying to navigate the various layers of government? Are you looking for an answer to a simple question but can't figure out where to start? If you have a question or a problem and need help getting to the right person, you can reach The Bureaucracy Buster one of three ways:

• E-mail: buster@honoluluadvertiser.com

• Phone: 535-2454 and leave a message.

Be sure to give us your name and daytime telephone number.