Desktop vs Laptop
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Shog9 wrote:
You can skimp on processor / video
On a development machine that will be running WPF and/or Vista? No way.
--Mike-- Visual C++ MVP :cool: LINKS~! Ericahist | PimpFish | CP SearchBar v3.0 | C++ Forum FAQ Ford, what's this fish doing in my ear?
Ah yes, i'd forgotten about those beasties... :-O After installing Vista on a desktop a while back, i've gradually stopped using it for... anything. I'm sure it'll be great in a few years, after folk like you and Josh churn out enough software that actually knows how to behave... but right now, it's surprises vs. frustrations. :sigh:
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I suppose you could remove the battery and always run on AC power.
--Mike-- Visual C++ MVP :cool: LINKS~! Ericahist | PimpFish | CP SearchBar v3.0 | C++ Forum FAQ Ford, what's this fish doing in my ear?
Michael Dunn wrote:
I suppose you could remove the battery and always run on AC power.
Great idea! Thanks.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - Aristotle -
Michael Dunn wrote:
I suppose you could remove the battery and always run on AC power.
Great idea! Thanks.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - AristotleBetter for your battery to.
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Better for your battery to.
I have my laptop for months and nobody (including hp customer care) told me this info... I always maintain the battery in the laptop, then if have some "blackout" the battery works like a "no-break". My battery is always charged, because I use it AND I maintain connected in AC. My question: The most correct procedure is remove the battery from laptop?
:sigh: Still searching for a good resource to LEARN English grammar ... :~
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.(John 3:16) :badger: -
I have my laptop for months and nobody (including hp customer care) told me this info... I always maintain the battery in the laptop, then if have some "blackout" the battery works like a "no-break". My battery is always charged, because I use it AND I maintain connected in AC. My question: The most correct procedure is remove the battery from laptop?
:sigh: Still searching for a good resource to LEARN English grammar ... :~
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.(John 3:16) :badger:I have my laptop plugged into a UPS and I don't leave the battery in to just max-charge. I pull it. Let the UPS take the abuse and use my battery as I need it. I have no idea if this is good or bad. It's worked for me. I have a 3+ year old battery that works like it did when it was new.
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I'm going to finally buy a new machine for myself, but am stuck trying to decide whether to get a desktop or laptop. I want to get a machine with Vista on it, a lot of RAM (preferably 4GB), a high-end graphics card, etc. I want those things mostly for my WPF development. Buying a desktop is definitely cheaper (especially since I already have a nice monitor). But, I'm leaving my current employer soon and will no longer have the laptop they let me use. So if I buy a desktop I won't have the sweet freedom to write my "leisure time" code away from the desk in my apartment. The only solution, though costly, is to buy a top-shelf laptop and then plug my monitor and keyboard into it when at home. I'm concerned that using a "docked" laptop as my regular home PC will be bad for the machine. Is this true? Does running a laptop with the lid closed for hours/days on end cause the machine to get really hot and deteriorate faster? Thanks for any info on this.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - AristotleJosh Smith wrote:
Does running a laptop with the lid closed for hours/days on end cause the machine to get really hot and deteriorate faster?
Why not run it with the lid open and take advantage of dual monitors. I've had mine here, an IBM ThinkPad, running for a few weeks. No problems. I would recommend the high-end laptop. ------------------------- This statement is false.
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I'm going to finally buy a new machine for myself, but am stuck trying to decide whether to get a desktop or laptop. I want to get a machine with Vista on it, a lot of RAM (preferably 4GB), a high-end graphics card, etc. I want those things mostly for my WPF development. Buying a desktop is definitely cheaper (especially since I already have a nice monitor). But, I'm leaving my current employer soon and will no longer have the laptop they let me use. So if I buy a desktop I won't have the sweet freedom to write my "leisure time" code away from the desk in my apartment. The only solution, though costly, is to buy a top-shelf laptop and then plug my monitor and keyboard into it when at home. I'm concerned that using a "docked" laptop as my regular home PC will be bad for the machine. Is this true? Does running a laptop with the lid closed for hours/days on end cause the machine to get really hot and deteriorate faster? Thanks for any info on this.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - AristotleIn every case I've ever seen, a laptop gives a dismal performance compared to a much cheaper desktop computer. They are at best a make-do solution. But there are times when they are indispensible. Running a laptop, if that you must have, on a docking station does not cause any damage or degradation that I've ever been able to detect. My boss uses a Dell Latitude as his only computer - on the road and in the office, docked - and it has lasted for years. It's still a lousy computer, compared to what he could have for a lot less money, but it serves his needs very well with no signs of expiring early. Buy what meets your needs functionally and don't worry about hurting the little tyke by parking it.
"...a photo album is like Life, but flat and stuck to pages." - Shog9
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I'm going to finally buy a new machine for myself, but am stuck trying to decide whether to get a desktop or laptop. I want to get a machine with Vista on it, a lot of RAM (preferably 4GB), a high-end graphics card, etc. I want those things mostly for my WPF development. Buying a desktop is definitely cheaper (especially since I already have a nice monitor). But, I'm leaving my current employer soon and will no longer have the laptop they let me use. So if I buy a desktop I won't have the sweet freedom to write my "leisure time" code away from the desk in my apartment. The only solution, though costly, is to buy a top-shelf laptop and then plug my monitor and keyboard into it when at home. I'm concerned that using a "docked" laptop as my regular home PC will be bad for the machine. Is this true? Does running a laptop with the lid closed for hours/days on end cause the machine to get really hot and deteriorate faster? Thanks for any info on this.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - Aristotlewell, I love my laptop. But it won't hold the soundcard I prefer. So I use a laptop for dev, and fight the family for the desktop for piano practice.
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I have my laptop for months and nobody (including hp customer care) told me this info... I always maintain the battery in the laptop, then if have some "blackout" the battery works like a "no-break". My battery is always charged, because I use it AND I maintain connected in AC. My question: The most correct procedure is remove the battery from laptop?
:sigh: Still searching for a good resource to LEARN English grammar ... :~
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.(John 3:16) :badger:This has hopefully changed in recent years, but with some older rechargeables I've had, leaving them on the charger constantly would eventually destroy them (like, after a few days). And not doing a full charge-drain-charge cycle every so often would make the battery develop memory, which means it can no longer hold a full charge.
--Mike-- Visual C++ MVP :cool: LINKS~! Ericahist | PimpFish | CP SearchBar v3.0 | C++ Forum FAQ Ford, what's this fish doing in my ear?
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In every case I've ever seen, a laptop gives a dismal performance compared to a much cheaper desktop computer. They are at best a make-do solution. But there are times when they are indispensible. Running a laptop, if that you must have, on a docking station does not cause any damage or degradation that I've ever been able to detect. My boss uses a Dell Latitude as his only computer - on the road and in the office, docked - and it has lasted for years. It's still a lousy computer, compared to what he could have for a lot less money, but it serves his needs very well with no signs of expiring early. Buy what meets your needs functionally and don't worry about hurting the little tyke by parking it.
"...a photo album is like Life, but flat and stuck to pages." - Shog9
It's true that a laptop costs more than a desktop with similar hardware. It's just one of those things you have to accept with a laptop. For me, portability and less noise were worth the added cost.
--Mike-- Visual C++ MVP :cool: LINKS~! Ericahist | PimpFish | CP SearchBar v3.0 | C++ Forum FAQ Ford, what's this fish doing in my ear?
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I'm going to finally buy a new machine for myself, but am stuck trying to decide whether to get a desktop or laptop. I want to get a machine with Vista on it, a lot of RAM (preferably 4GB), a high-end graphics card, etc. I want those things mostly for my WPF development. Buying a desktop is definitely cheaper (especially since I already have a nice monitor). But, I'm leaving my current employer soon and will no longer have the laptop they let me use. So if I buy a desktop I won't have the sweet freedom to write my "leisure time" code away from the desk in my apartment. The only solution, though costly, is to buy a top-shelf laptop and then plug my monitor and keyboard into it when at home. I'm concerned that using a "docked" laptop as my regular home PC will be bad for the machine. Is this true? Does running a laptop with the lid closed for hours/days on end cause the machine to get really hot and deteriorate faster? Thanks for any info on this.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - AristotleI know others have already weighed in, but I've been using laptops pretty much exclusively for the last 6 years for work. I just moved from an Alienware Area 51m desktop replacement to a Dell Inspiron 9400[^] a few months ago. I couldn't be happier. The screen is huge, the notebook is light. I've got a 2GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB of RAM, 100GB 7200 RPM HDD, and the 256MB nVidia 7900 GS and a 17" UXGA display at 1900x1200. I've been running Vista on it for months now and it looks gorgeous. Sure, it cost more. Is it worth it that I can work from home, the office, Starbucks, school, the beach, and a friend's house on the same exact machine? Absolutely. And it's not like I don't have the horsepower to do just about everything I want with that Core 2 in there. (Which will run 64 bit Vista if you like.) Everybody thinks the laptop is big, but you already said you could handle a heavy laptop...and to be honest, it's not that big. They just haven't used an Alienware before. ;P I never use it docked. And the only peripheral I plug into it regularly is my wired Intellimouse (still going strong after 6 years...love that thing). My advice: get a notebook. I couldn't imagine being tied to a desktop, and based on your comments, I don't think that's the type of person you are either. :)
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I'm going to finally buy a new machine for myself, but am stuck trying to decide whether to get a desktop or laptop. I want to get a machine with Vista on it, a lot of RAM (preferably 4GB), a high-end graphics card, etc. I want those things mostly for my WPF development. Buying a desktop is definitely cheaper (especially since I already have a nice monitor). But, I'm leaving my current employer soon and will no longer have the laptop they let me use. So if I buy a desktop I won't have the sweet freedom to write my "leisure time" code away from the desk in my apartment. The only solution, though costly, is to buy a top-shelf laptop and then plug my monitor and keyboard into it when at home. I'm concerned that using a "docked" laptop as my regular home PC will be bad for the machine. Is this true? Does running a laptop with the lid closed for hours/days on end cause the machine to get really hot and deteriorate faster? Thanks for any info on this.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - AristotleDesktop,It all started with a p-3 450 mhz desktop. Notebook, had an IBM thinkpad, then an Acer travelmate. I sold both of them and now waiting to buy a Dell core2 duo notebook. (just waiting for the prices to come down :sigh:), 2 months back I assembled a sempron machine (desk), it's actually doing good. No worries. From my experience, the conclusion : Desktop + No heating issues. You can dare to run it round the clock. + Gaming. I prefer desktops while playing games. + You'll get high configuration h/w at (comparitively)lower prices for desktops. + Seemless extensibilty to multiple drives. You can have n number of optical drives(internal) if you wish.
- Power problems YAK!!! X| shit f*cking desktop. It tested my patience to the hell. I almost kicked off my p3 machine. The entire machine is just dependent on the UPS. If the UPS misses it's job, and there's a power fluctuation, damn that's it. Particularly in our country, the electricity moves over the lines only with the help of fluctuations X|. - The idiot SMPS . I had seen too many problems with the SMPS. often the switches fails, leading to clueless reboots. F*ck X| - No mobility. if you have the microsoft wireless kit,to some extent you can move around. But with desks, you can never do this while sleeping : Open-Your-Eyes-Turn-Around-SwitchOn-the-Notebook-type-the-logicOrWhatever-shutDown-get-back-to-sleep. LOL. That's a cool life to have your notebook in bed and finish your work whenever you like.NOTEBOOKS + :love: :-O :love: + Mobility. + Open-Your-Eyes-Turn-Around-SwitchOn-the-Notebook-type-the-logicOrWhatever-shutDown-get- back-to-sleep. + It looks good to see someone working with a notebook. That's why all bosses rushes for a laptop I guess :rolleyes:. + Almost everything is integrated. Webcam, finger print recg, bluethooth, wifi etc. Conclusion:NOTEBOOKS ROCK !!!:jig: :beer: :jig:
Code-Frog:So if this is Pumpkinhead. Time for him to run and hide. It's an interesting thought really.
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I'm going to finally buy a new machine for myself, but am stuck trying to decide whether to get a desktop or laptop. I want to get a machine with Vista on it, a lot of RAM (preferably 4GB), a high-end graphics card, etc. I want those things mostly for my WPF development. Buying a desktop is definitely cheaper (especially since I already have a nice monitor). But, I'm leaving my current employer soon and will no longer have the laptop they let me use. So if I buy a desktop I won't have the sweet freedom to write my "leisure time" code away from the desk in my apartment. The only solution, though costly, is to buy a top-shelf laptop and then plug my monitor and keyboard into it when at home. I'm concerned that using a "docked" laptop as my regular home PC will be bad for the machine. Is this true? Does running a laptop with the lid closed for hours/days on end cause the machine to get really hot and deteriorate faster? Thanks for any info on this.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - AristotleI have been a desktop facist for years (screen, grunt, price, user interface....) but recently bought my first own laptop (previously used, reluctantly, various company ones for travel/onsite/presentation stuff) for development. I avoided high level video and went for appropriate processor and memory. Think about battery life. The freedom of no cords is awesome, especially if you do industrial stuff, presentations and travel. I started off using plugin screens and keyboard at home and craved a docking station then Voila...remote desktop. Offline files are pretty simple to keep things together as well. Just like being there over a local segment. Wouldn't be without the laptop now.
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I have been a desktop facist for years (screen, grunt, price, user interface....) but recently bought my first own laptop (previously used, reluctantly, various company ones for travel/onsite/presentation stuff) for development. I avoided high level video and went for appropriate processor and memory. Think about battery life. The freedom of no cords is awesome, especially if you do industrial stuff, presentations and travel. I started off using plugin screens and keyboard at home and craved a docking station then Voila...remote desktop. Offline files are pretty simple to keep things together as well. Just like being there over a local segment. Wouldn't be without the laptop now.
Yep. Nothing beats using your high-end desktop from the comfort of the sofa! :cool:
Anna :rose: Linting the day away :cool: Anna's Place | Tears and Laughter "If mushy peas are the food of the devil, the stotty cake is the frisbee of God"
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I've used/abused/dropped/traveled internationally (high humidity destination)/banged/left plugged in and closed for months. My laptop and the battery has never burst, gone bad, caught fire. The display is fine (I always use the display cloth when closed and traveling. It's a cloth between the keyboard and screen.). I would have to suggest a top-tier laptop for you. You just don't strike me as being satisfied with a desktop. Get a rock-solid Dell Precision and you should be good to go. Pack it wide and deep with a warranty and you'll even be smiling. That's my advice and believe me when I say my laptop has gone everywhere and done everything. I frequently drive with it closed and running and in the backpack. I abuse the crap out of the thing and it just churns on.
I've always had a laptop from work. I plug into my home desktop monitor when at home & spare monitor at work when in the city office. I don't bother closing the laptop, and use both screens (dual monitor set-up). Only time I use the laptop monitor on its own is when travelling and at client sites. Be aware though. I have managed to kill two hard disk drives, on two different laptops over the last five years. Life of both hdds was around 2 years each. Julian
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I suppose you could remove the battery and always run on AC power.
--Mike-- Visual C++ MVP :cool: LINKS~! Ericahist | PimpFish | CP SearchBar v3.0 | C++ Forum FAQ Ford, what's this fish doing in my ear?
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code-frog wrote:
Don't you think that Chris hoped this would happen when he launched this site way back when? Kind of cool eh?
Yes indeed. :rose:
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - AristotleErrm. Should I stop reading now and leave you two alone together?:laugh:
the last thing I want to see is some pasty-faced geek with skin so pale that it's almost translucent trying to bump parts with a partner - John Simmons / outlaw programmer
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before. -
Notebook, no question. The trouble is, to get the specs you want, you may need one that's over heavy
Christian Graus - C++ MVP 'Why don't we jump on a fad that hasn't already been widely discredited ?' - Dilbert
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I'm going to finally buy a new machine for myself, but am stuck trying to decide whether to get a desktop or laptop. I want to get a machine with Vista on it, a lot of RAM (preferably 4GB), a high-end graphics card, etc. I want those things mostly for my WPF development. Buying a desktop is definitely cheaper (especially since I already have a nice monitor). But, I'm leaving my current employer soon and will no longer have the laptop they let me use. So if I buy a desktop I won't have the sweet freedom to write my "leisure time" code away from the desk in my apartment. The only solution, though costly, is to buy a top-shelf laptop and then plug my monitor and keyboard into it when at home. I'm concerned that using a "docked" laptop as my regular home PC will be bad for the machine. Is this true? Does running a laptop with the lid closed for hours/days on end cause the machine to get really hot and deteriorate faster? Thanks for any info on this.
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - AristotleI had a similar decision to make a few months back. I opted for a laptop - a high-spec MacBook Pro with windows XP. I then bought a 30" display, separate keyboard and mouse and can use it as a desktop at work and still take it with me when I need to travel. I don't find the Mac gets any hotter with the lid closed than open. OK, it's a bit more expensive, but doesn't involve making compromises. John.
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Desktop,It all started with a p-3 450 mhz desktop. Notebook, had an IBM thinkpad, then an Acer travelmate. I sold both of them and now waiting to buy a Dell core2 duo notebook. (just waiting for the prices to come down :sigh:), 2 months back I assembled a sempron machine (desk), it's actually doing good. No worries. From my experience, the conclusion : Desktop + No heating issues. You can dare to run it round the clock. + Gaming. I prefer desktops while playing games. + You'll get high configuration h/w at (comparitively)lower prices for desktops. + Seemless extensibilty to multiple drives. You can have n number of optical drives(internal) if you wish.
- Power problems YAK!!! X| shit f*cking desktop. It tested my patience to the hell. I almost kicked off my p3 machine. The entire machine is just dependent on the UPS. If the UPS misses it's job, and there's a power fluctuation, damn that's it. Particularly in our country, the electricity moves over the lines only with the help of fluctuations X|. - The idiot SMPS . I had seen too many problems with the SMPS. often the switches fails, leading to clueless reboots. F*ck X| - No mobility. if you have the microsoft wireless kit,to some extent you can move around. But with desks, you can never do this while sleeping : Open-Your-Eyes-Turn-Around-SwitchOn-the-Notebook-type-the-logicOrWhatever-shutDown-get-back-to-sleep. LOL. That's a cool life to have your notebook in bed and finish your work whenever you like.NOTEBOOKS + :love: :-O :love: + Mobility. + Open-Your-Eyes-Turn-Around-SwitchOn-the-Notebook-type-the-logicOrWhatever-shutDown-get- back-to-sleep. + It looks good to see someone working with a notebook. That's why all bosses rushes for a laptop I guess :rolleyes:. + Almost everything is integrated. Webcam, finger print recg, bluethooth, wifi etc. Conclusion:NOTEBOOKS ROCK !!!:jig: :beer: :jig:
Code-Frog:So if this is Pumpkinhead. Time for him to run and hide. It's an interesting thought really.
Thanks VuNic.
VuNic wrote:
Particularly in our country, the electricity moves over the lines only with the help of fluctuations
:laugh:
:josh: My WPF Blog[^]
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. - Aristotle