Laptop suggestions
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
I've got an hp pavilion laptop with 15" screen that does 1600x1200 (a must for programming). It's got 512megs of ram, 60gig 7200spin hd, 2.8 P4. I love it and would recommend it. There are some other guys here at the office that have hp pavillions that are the centrino and have the 15.4" screen at 1920x1200 which is also pretty sweet. Those are a lot lighter than mine also.
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
Matt Philmon wrote: So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). Matt Philmon wrote: I will likely put some games on it as well With so much fun in your hands, who needs games? :) Yes, even I am blogging now!
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
http://www.alienware.com[^] :-D I'm really uber-happy with my Area 51m. :)
Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam possit materiari?
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http://www.alienware.com[^] :-D I'm really uber-happy with my Area 51m. :)
Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam possit materiari?
ditto!! my first question in any request for laptop suggestions is this: casual use? notes? or "mobile desktop machine"? the alienware Area51m is the first laptop to run my 3D software, but more than that, it is a mobile desktop system. It's primary purpose for me is to be able to develop and test 3D applications in the field (read: middle of desert) or on business trips make customizations for the customer on site. _________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
I recently got a HP nx9110 and it works very nicely. It handled Half Life 2 and on a daily basis I run VS.NET, SQL Server, IIS and Photoshop without problems. I got the 3.2Ghz HT with 1Gig RAM, 60Gig HD and 128Mb (shared) video. BTW watch out for nx9110s with two 256Mb RAM chips when wanting to upgrade to 1Gig as I did. Took me a month and lots of hassles to get them to put in two 512Mb chips. regards, Paul Watson South Africa The Code Project
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
I also use an Alienware Area 51m as my main development machine. While I love the machine, my experiences with Alienware customer service were a nightmare. My LCD burned out after only about 3 weeks of owning the machine. After sending it in for service, it took me more than 2 months of fighting with customer service before my machine was repaired and returned to me. I could rant in greater detail, but suffice it to say that there wasn't a question of whether the problem was eligible for warranty, it was all about turn-around time and flexibility of customer service policy. I haven't had another problem in the last 18 months, and overall the laptop is fantastic. However, as happy as I am with the hardware, the service was so god-awful that I vowed never to buy Alienware again and never to recommend an Alienware machine to another person. If I had it to do over, I would go with either a VoodooPC[^] or Sager[^]. Just my experience. Your milage may vary. --Jesse
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
The Thinkpad T41 is easially the most reccomended laptop by the linux crowd. Get one now though, IBM just sold their pc line to China, so who knows how the future will fare... Are you sure you don't want light? If you want to run the latest games, then you need to trade everything for power, but next month a new computer and game will be out that you can't run....
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
Matt Philmon wrote: It doesn't need to be particularly light Heh, you will probably be changing your mind when you are carrying around 14lbs of laptop. Thats why I got an IBM X40, only 2.6lbs :-D Matt Newman
Even the very best tools in the hands of an idiot will produce something of little or no value. - Chris Meech on Idiots
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The Thinkpad T41 is easially the most reccomended laptop by the linux crowd. Get one now though, IBM just sold their pc line to China, so who knows how the future will fare... Are you sure you don't want light? If you want to run the latest games, then you need to trade everything for power, but next month a new computer and game will be out that you can't run....
Thanks for the recommendation. (Thanks to all). I will definitely take a look at this latest Thinkpad and it appears that people seem happy with those HP's so I'll look there as well. Alienware is just too overpriced for me. I will play games on occasion but the primary use is for development. Essentially my whole thing about weight vs power comes down to usability and sluggishness. An example: I can burn CD's while browsing the internet, compiling code, checking email, and even copying files across the network all the same time on my desktop PC and the PC is still responsive and usable (1 Gig of RAM). However, with my previous laptop doing something like burning a CD or copying files practically made the OS completely unresponsive. I'm not sure what the differences in architecture between PC's and laptops are (were) that caused this but I am a major multi-tasker and I HATE being "sidelined" by my PC.
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
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Thanks for the recommendation. (Thanks to all). I will definitely take a look at this latest Thinkpad and it appears that people seem happy with those HP's so I'll look there as well. Alienware is just too overpriced for me. I will play games on occasion but the primary use is for development. Essentially my whole thing about weight vs power comes down to usability and sluggishness. An example: I can burn CD's while browsing the internet, compiling code, checking email, and even copying files across the network all the same time on my desktop PC and the PC is still responsive and usable (1 Gig of RAM). However, with my previous laptop doing something like burning a CD or copying files practically made the OS completely unresponsive. I'm not sure what the differences in architecture between PC's and laptops are (were) that caused this but I am a major multi-tasker and I HATE being "sidelined" by my PC.
Well yes, but a modern light laptop with good RAM and processor is plenty fast for most uses. There are trade offs, but most of them are for low power, not low speed. (Where I work the pentium M in the light machines beats the P4 in the heavy machines, despite being close to half the speed! YMMV)
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I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
I've had my Gateway 450 (1.6g Centrino, 768m ram) for about a year now. Very long battery life is important to me and it has (had) about 4+ hours. The battery has gone south finally and is down to 2-3 hours. Still a very good laptop. Good keyboard. Light. I would consider Centrino as it is supposed to run cooler than AMD or P4 and has good speed.
α.γεεκ
Fortune passes everywhere.
Duke Leto Atreides -
I HATE laptops. I really, really do. However, it's become necessary for me to have one. I'm involved in a new project that requires me to be able to work in several different places so I really no longer have a choice. That said, from my own personal experience (dated experience) the Thinkpad I had about 5 years ago remains to this day the best laptop I've ever used. Also, the last TWO Dell laptops I've used at my normal job were (are) plagued with nearly constant problems. Unless they have made some really major improvements in the past year I'd really rather steer clear of Dell for laptops. So, I'll be developing in both Windows XP and Linux (using Mono). It doesn't need to be particularly light... I'd rather have power. I will likely put some games on it as well. Any suggestions?
Mine's an Acer Travelmate 8006LMi[^]. So far it's behaved pretty much flawlessly (apart from a misguided ATI driver which I disabled). It's fast (2GHz Pentium M, though the 80GB disk is only 4200rpm that can be upgraded), has a good display (1400x1050 15.1") and the battery lasts for well over 4 hours. 4 USB ports and built in Wi-fi, Bluetooth and card readers make it a flexible little critter too. Anna :rose: Riverblade Ltd - Software Consultancy Services Anna's Place | Tears and Laughter "Be yourself - not what others think you should be" - Marcia Graesch "Anna's just a sexy-looking lesbian tart" - A friend, trying to wind me up. It didn't work.
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Mine's an Acer Travelmate 8006LMi[^]. So far it's behaved pretty much flawlessly (apart from a misguided ATI driver which I disabled). It's fast (2GHz Pentium M, though the 80GB disk is only 4200rpm that can be upgraded), has a good display (1400x1050 15.1") and the battery lasts for well over 4 hours. 4 USB ports and built in Wi-fi, Bluetooth and card readers make it a flexible little critter too. Anna :rose: Riverblade Ltd - Software Consultancy Services Anna's Place | Tears and Laughter "Be yourself - not what others think you should be" - Marcia Graesch "Anna's just a sexy-looking lesbian tart" - A friend, trying to wind me up. It didn't work.
Anna-Jayne Metcalfe wrote: make it a flexible little critter too I now have this image of a laptop with sleeping basket and some exercise bars... :sigh: P.S. Don't worry but I have an interview in Basingstoke on Wednesday ! The tigress is here :-D
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Anna-Jayne Metcalfe wrote: make it a flexible little critter too I now have this image of a laptop with sleeping basket and some exercise bars... :sigh: P.S. Don't worry but I have an interview in Basingstoke on Wednesday ! The tigress is here :-D
Trollslayer wrote: I now have this image of a laptop with sleeping basket and some exercise bars... Well, she (Amalthea) does sleep next to my bed most of the time...:rolleyes: As far as I'm aware, she hasn't started lapping at the Baileys yet though! :laugh: Trollslayer wrote: P.S. Don't worry but I have an interview in Basingstoke on Wednesday ! Hey it's you who should be scared, not me! Whereabouts is it? Anna :rose: Riverblade Ltd - Software Consultancy Services Anna's Place | Tears and Laughter "Be yourself - not what others think you should be" - Marcia Graesch "Anna's just a sexy-looking lesbian tart" - A friend, trying to wind me up. It didn't work.