scott wrote:

> Shiny things sell!

Indeed, I keep thinking about buying myself a laptop. Which is clearly 
absurd, given that I never go outside. Why the hell would I need a 
portable PC if I never go anywhere?! And yet, I keep wanting to buy one.

Hell, I keep thinking about buying an Apple! This is not sensible in any 
way; I have invested thousands of pounds in PC software, all of which 
would be wasted if I decided to use an Apple. I don't know of a single 
piece of software the Apple has that would be useful to me. (I'm sure 
there *are* such items, but I don't know of any of them yet.) And they 
cost roughly 2x what a PC would cost.

But they're so *shiny* and *cute*!! >_<

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And lo On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 09:11:50 -0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> did  
spake thusly:

> scott wrote:
>
>> Shiny things sell!
>
> Indeed, I keep thinking about buying myself a laptop. Which is clearly  
> absurd, given that I never go outside. Why the hell would I need a  
> portable PC if I never go anywhere?! And yet, I keep wanting to buy one.

Space saving. Instead of going to the computer because that's where it's  
hooked up to the router, printer, scanner etc. you just use it where you  
want and put it away afterwards. If you do need to use one of those  
items... well the router is wireless, printers can be wireless too or plug  
into the router and if push comes to shove you just take the laptop to  
them and plug them in how many times do you use the peripherals anyway?

-- 
Phil Cook

--
I once tried to be apathetic, but I just couldn't be bothered
http://flipc.blogspot.com

Post a reply to this message

>>> Shiny things sell!
>>
>> Indeed, I keep thinking about buying myself a laptop. Which is clearly 
>> absurd, given that I never go outside. Why the hell would I need a 
>> portable PC if I never go anywhere?! And yet, I keep wanting to buy one.
> 
> Space saving. Instead of going to the computer because that's where it's 
> hooked up to the router, printer, scanner etc. you just use it where you 
> want and put it away afterwards. If you do need to use one of those 
> items... well the router is wireless, printers can be wireless too or 
> plug into the router and if push comes to shove you just take the laptop 
> to them and plug them in how many times do you use the peripherals anyway?

The problem is, after 4 months the battery in a laptop stops working, so 
it must be permanently connected to the mains anyway. It is virtually 
impossible to use a computer without a mouse, so you must have a mouse 
connected too. If you want Internet access... well, personally, I would 
never, ever use a wireless system. I don't trust them. Too easy to steal 
my data and my connection. (Plus the problems of it not working half the 
time.) Then there's my gaming microphone, my stereo system, my keyboards 
(plural)... I don't need those connected *all* the time, but it's a faf 
to plug stuff in each time I need it...

In short, a laptop makes no sense for me at all. And yet, I keep wanting 
to buy one.

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And lo On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 12:13:16 -0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> did  
spake thusly:

>>>> Shiny things sell!
>>>
>>> Indeed, I keep thinking about buying myself a laptop. Which is clearly  
>>> absurd, given that I never go outside. Why the hell would I need a  
>>> portable PC if I never go anywhere?! And yet, I keep wanting to buy  
>>> one.
>>  Space saving. Instead of going to the computer because that's where  
>> it's hooked up to the router, printer, scanner etc. you just use it  
>> where you want and put it away afterwards. If you do need to use one of  
>> those items... well the router is wireless, printers can be wireless  
>> too or plug into the router and if push comes to shove you just take  
>> the laptop to them and plug them in how many times do you use the  
>> peripherals anyway?
>
> The problem is, after 4 months the battery in a laptop stops working, so  
> it must be permanently connected to the mains anyway.

Wow that's a long-life battery mine's only got a couple of hours charge in  
it. Being serious where did you get those figures from? I know plenty of  
people with year-old+ laptops.

> It is virtually impossible to use a computer without a mouse, so you  
> must have a mouse connected too.

The magic of Bluetooth, even has its own little pouch. Still got the  
touchpad for little things if I don't want to dig it out.

> If you want Internet access... well, personally, I would never, ever use  
> a wireless system. I don't trust them. Too easy to steal my data and my  
> connection.

Calculated risk. Yes it's easier to access then a wired system, but with  
WPA and a non-broadcasting SSID you have to weigh up the potential that  
someone will want to sit outside your house and try and hack it vs. the  
ease-of-use you gain.

> (Plus the problems of it not working half the time.)

Other then the initial setup (damn Vista) I've this very laptop connecting  
to both the office and my home without any trouble.

> Then there's my gaming microphone, my stereo system, my keyboards  
> (plural)... I don't need those connected *all* the time, but it's a faf  
> to plug stuff in each time I need it...

Again though, it's a weighing up of how often you use or need them and  
whether you can acquire a dock.

> In short, a laptop makes no sense for me at all. And yet, I keep wanting  
> to buy one.

Sucuumb to the urge.

-- 
Phil Cook

--
I once tried to be apathetic, but I just couldn't be bothered
http://flipc.blogspot.com

Post a reply to this message

>> The problem is, after 4 months the battery in a laptop stops working, 
>> so it must be permanently connected to the mains anyway.
> 
> Wow that's a long-life battery mine's only got a couple of hours charge 
> in it. Being serious where did you get those figures from? I know plenty 
> of people with year-old+ laptops.

Well, every laptop *I* have seen, the battery loses the ability to 
recharge after a few months, maybe a year. When you first get the laptop 
it works fine. After a few months, the battery seems to go flat much 
faster than it should. After a little longer, it gets to the point where 
no matter how long you charge the battery for, as soon as you remove the 
power cable, the laptop instantly shuts off. I've got, like, 4 laptops 
on my office floor here that all behave this way.

>> It is virtually impossible to use a computer without a mouse, so you 
>> must have a mouse connected too.
> 
> The magic of Bluetooth, even has its own little pouch. Still got the 
> touchpad for little things if I don't want to dig it out.

How big is this mouse?

>> If you want Internet access... well, personally, I would never, ever 
>> use a wireless system. I don't trust them. Too easy to steal my data 
>> and my connection.
> 
> Calculated risk.

Yeah, well, given all the problems above, there isn't much to be gained 
here.

>> (Plus the problems of it not working half the time.)
> 
> Other then the initial setup (damn Vista) I've this very laptop 
> connecting to both the office and my home without any trouble.

My dad has problems to this day with computers randomly dropping their 
network connections or just plain not seeing the WiFi router at all. To 
the point that he's lifting floorboards to run cables round the building 
to make his gear actually ****ing work properly.

Plus, AFAIK, WiFi is currently much slower than Ethernet.

>> In short, a laptop makes no sense for me at all. And yet, I keep 
>> wanting to buy one.
> 
> Sucuumb to the urge.

Luke... Luuuuke... *give in* to the _Dark Side_... it is pointless to 
resist, my son...


Or, my personal favourit:

Luke... Luuuke... I know what you're getting for Christmas, Luke.

How do you know, father?




I have felt your presents.

:-D

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> Well, every laptop *I* have seen, the battery loses the ability to 
> recharge after a few months, maybe a year.

Never seen that here, and all the people in my department use laptops a lot. 
I have seen two laptops with dead batteries, they were at least 3 years old 
and we just got new batteries for them.

> I've got, like, 4 laptops on my office floor here that all behave this 
> way.

How old are they and what brand?  If they really are only 4 months old then 
just ask for a free replacement.

> How big is this mouse?

You can get them in all sizes, ranging from the tiny travel ones up to full 
size mice.

> My dad has problems to this day with computers randomly dropping their 
> network connections or just plain not seeing the WiFi router at all. To 
> the point that he's lifting floorboards to run cables round the building 
> to make his gear actually ****ing work properly.

Hmm maybe bad/cheap access point/network card/drivers?  I have 3 machines 
running at home over wireless continuously with no problems, in addition 
even my phone, PS3 and Wii connect to it!  At work it's the same, no 
problems.  I guess buying an access point and NIC from the same company 
might help?  Dunno, should be a solvable problem, it's not like nobody can 
get a wireless network to work correctly.

> Plus, AFAIK, WiFi is currently much slower than Ethernet.

About half the speed, but your internet connection will probably be the 
bottleneck.

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"Invisible" <voi### [at] devnull> wrote in message 
news:4935265c$1@news.povray.org...

> The problem is, after 4 months the battery in a laptop stops working, so 
> it must be permanently connected to the mains anyway.

It does?
Strange, I've had mine for a year and a half and the battery still has the 
same life it had when I bought it.,

> It is virtually impossible to use a computer without a mouse, so you must 
> have a mouse connected too.

It is?

The only time I use a mouse on my laptop is when I'm playing games. For 
surfing and normal work I don't need one.
I was given one of these, so it's sooo easy to cary in the laptop bag. 
http://www.newtonperipherals.com/index3.html

> If you want Internet access... well, personally, I would never, ever use a 
> wireless system. I don't trust them. Too easy to steal my data and my 
> connection. (Plus the problems of it not working half the time.)

Encryption + MAC address filtering for your home wireless network.
If you're using someone else's wireless (hotel, conference center, etc) be 
aware of what you're sending and use SSL as much as possible and install a 
good firewall.

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"scott" <sco### [at] scottcom> wrote in message news:49353934@news.povray.org...
>
>> My dad has problems to this day with computers randomly dropping their 
>> network connections or just plain not seeing the WiFi router at all. To 
>> the point that he's lifting floorboards to run cables round the building 
>> to make his gear actually ****ing work properly.
>
> Hmm maybe bad/cheap access point/network card/drivers?  I have 3 machines 
> running at home over wireless continuously with no problems, in addition 
> even my phone, PS3 and Wii connect to it!

Agreed. My deskop and laptop use wireless, the server and xbox have network 
cables plugged into the router. I can work anywhere in the flat on the 
laptop and still see the wireless.
Signal's a bit low in the bedroon (thick, very solid walls) I may have to 
pick up a repeater sometime.

Generally cheap routers/access points cause bad signal.

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>> Well, every laptop *I* have seen, the battery loses the ability to 
>> recharge after a few months, maybe a year.
> 
> Never seen that here, and all the people in my department use laptops a 
> lot. I have seen two laptops with dead batteries, they were at least 3 
> years old and we just got new batteries for them.

Heh. *My* laptop came from PC World, so it had a 6 month warranty 
instead of the usual 12 months. Also, if you want support, you *must* 
get it through PC World. (If it had been bought anywhere else, we would 
have got it direct from the manufacturers.)

Also, it apparently took my mum many, many months to find a replacement 
battery. Apparently she had to buy an exorbitant sum to have one shipped 
over from Korea specially. (Or at least, this is what she told me...)

>> I've got, like, 4 laptops on my office floor here that all behave this 
>> way.
> 
> How old are they and what brand?  If they really are only 4 months old 
> then just ask for a free replacement.

All different versions of Acer TravelMate. None of them are young any 
more. (Maybe 2, 3 years old?) A few of them will run on battery power 
for, like, 20 minutes. But none are very reliable. Apparently they were 
when new.

>> My dad has problems to this day with computers randomly dropping their 
>> network connections or just plain not seeing the WiFi router at all. 
>> To the point that he's lifting floorboards to run cables round the 
>> building to make his gear actually ****ing work properly.
> 
> Hmm maybe bad/cheap access point/network card/drivers?  I have 3 
> machines running at home over wireless continuously with no problems, in 
> addition even my phone, PS3 and Wii connect to it!  At work it's the 
> same, no problems.  I guess buying an access point and NIC from the same 
> company might help?  Dunno, should be a solvable problem, it's not like 
> nobody can get a wireless network to work correctly.

My dad bought a Belkin WiFi router which comes with a free Belkin WiFi 
adaptor for your PC. In other words, the entire rig is same-brand - and 
a pricey brand at that! But no, he had endless problems with it.

Actually, he bought a cheap "there isn't even a brand on the box" WiFi 
adaptor from Maplin, and it worked much better than the supplied Belkin 
one. But even so, if you move too far away from the router... no signal. 
(Or rather, intermittent signal. Some days it's fine. Some days it won't 
work for toffee.)

>> Plus, AFAIK, WiFi is currently much slower than Ethernet.
> 
> About half the speed, but your internet connection will probably be the 
> bottleneck.

Well, that's true enough...

BTW, is WiFi faster or slower than Bluetooth? Every time I have to use 
that thing, I'm struck by how utterly low it is. (10 minutes to transfer 
a few KB??)

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On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:22:56 +0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:

>
>All different versions of Acer TravelMate. None of them are young any 
>more. (Maybe 2, 3 years old?) A few of them will run on battery power 
>for, like, 20 minutes. But none are very reliable. Apparently they were 
>when new.

Rechargeable batteries are funny things before Li-ion batteries, the best thing
you could do for them was is to "work" them. That is charge and completely
discharge them regularly. With Li-ion batteries that does not work and in fact
it is counter productive. Li-ion batteries can be kept on charge all the time, I
believe.
You might be able to put some new life into your old laptop batteries by
discharging them completely then charging then again a couple of times but if
your laptop shuts off immediately on switching the power off then I fear that
they are goosed.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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