I didn't 'throw out' my DVD collection, but I did get rid of over 90% of it. Back when Hastings was still in business, I took all of it to them for a 'buy back' (knowing I'd only get pennies on my dollar). I only kept the physical media of things I re-watch often (and have re-watched since I got rid of the rest of the titles).

I went from two cheap multi-shelf Walmart DVD shelves down to a single shelf. Everything else is stored on my Plex server (which is also my NAS), which itself is just a PC with a built in 8-bay 3.5" hotswap cage. :)

I'm in the same boat as others that have commented -- I've got some old IDE drives sitting on my shelf, and every time I've ever pulled them down to see what was/is on them, they always fire right up.

I've never had any in continuous use for decades, though...