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Is it common to code on a laptop instead of a desktop? I'd find it style cramping. Need the extra screens, full keyboard and mouse. But I work in digital market

Is it common to code on a laptop instead of a desktop? I'd find it style cramping. Need the extra screens, full keyboard and mouse. But I work in digital marketing so my notions may be way off base.

pjmlp 9y ago
My last personal desktop was in 2002. At work we switched to Thinkpads with docking stations back in 2006. Never used a desktop again, only once an abandoned tower re-purposed as server.
stephenr 9y ago
I haven't used a desktop for work (or anything really) since... 2009? My experience with developers I work with tends to be the same. The only place I usually hear about desktops being used, is in company office environments. > Need the extra screens, full keyboard and mouse. If you're at a desk where those things make sense, you can still use all of those things, but you also get portability if you want to take your primary working machine with you somewhere. Edit: admittedly my next machine is potentially going to be a desktop. Mostly because this laptop while ageing, still performs OK, and will still be usable if I need to work outside my home-office.
avhon1 9y ago
> need the extra screens Nowadays, you can plug several high-resolution displays in to a laptop (HDMI, DisplayPort, Thunderbolt over USB3...), and the integrated graphics will handle it just fine. Just unplug one cable to go to a meeting, or work out of the office. > need the [...] full keyboard If you're not doing data entry, and you're not using applications that use the numpad for keyboard shortcuts, then ditching the numpad is fine. I personally prefer laptops without the numpad because then keyboard is centered on the screen. Using a laptop where I had to have my hands left of center might drive me crazy. > need the [...] mouse Personal preference (largely influenced by the work you're doing). For precision graphical work, there's little that can beat a good mouse or trackball. For pushing text around the screen and browsing the internet, a touchpad or trackpoint is just fine.

Is it common to code on a laptop instead of a desktop? I'd find it style cramping. Need the extra screens, full keyboard and mouse. But I work in digital marketing so my notions may be way off base.

pjmlp 9y ago

My last personal desktop was in 2002. At work we switched to Thinkpads with docking stations back in 2006. Never used a desktop again, only once an abandoned tower re-purposed as server.

stephenr 9y ago

I haven't used a desktop for work (or anything really) since... 2009? My experience with developers I work with tends to be the same. The only place I usually hear about desktops being used, is in company office environments. > Need the extra screens, full keyboard and mouse. If you're at a desk where those things make sense, you can still use all of those things, but you also get portability if you want to take your primary working machine with you somewhere. Edit: admittedly my next machine is potentially going to be a desktop. Mostly because this laptop while ageing, still performs OK, and will still be usable if I need to work outside my home-office.

avhon1 9y ago

> need the extra screens Nowadays, you can plug several high-resolution displays in to a laptop (HDMI, DisplayPort, Thunderbolt over USB3...), and the integrated graphics will handle it just fine. Just unplug one cable to go to a meeting, or work out of the office. > need the [...] full keyboard If you're not doing data entry, and you're not using applications that use the numpad for keyboard shortcuts, then ditching the numpad is fine. I personally prefer laptops without the numpad because then keyboard is centered on the screen. Using a laptop where I had to have my hands left of center might drive me crazy. > need the [...] mouse Personal preference (largely influenced by the work you're doing). For precision graphical work, there's little that can beat a good mouse or trackball. For pushing text around the screen and browsing the internet, a touchpad or trackpoint is just fine.