4 ms·

I use MBA (4GB RAM upgrade, 128GB SSD) for doing a lot of XCode development. XCode4 runs very smoothly and I've never had any speed issues with running the iOS

by chime 16y ago

I use MBA (4GB RAM upgrade, 128GB SSD) for doing a lot of XCode development. XCode4 runs very smoothly and I've never had any speed issues with running the iOS Simulator. It's light, doesn't heat up, and is very stable. I gave up my http://chir.ag/stuff/5lcd.jpg http://chir.ag/stuff/5lcd.jpg setup for a single MBA and I couldn't be happier (my electric bill went down by $125/month). From personal experience I know that I'm more productive on 5 LCD than on 3 LCD or 2 LCD setup. However, I spend a lot more time working on my MBA than I ever did on my desktop and though I work slower, the end result is that I'm overall producing more.

bergie 16y ago
I'm the only one in our company not using any external monitors. The added screen real estate would be nice, but the downside is that then you have a different setup in the office and on the road. I rather get used to a single screen I always have with me.
- jonhohle 16y ago
  You can plug in an external screen into your laptop. Sometimes I use just an external display with my laptop; sometimes I use it as a second (primary) monitor.
  - bergie 16y ago
    I know I can, but I want to keep the working setup exactly same regardless of whether I'm at my desk or in a train
- devinfoley 16y ago
  I've thought of ditching my monitor for this reason many times.
- Braxo 16y ago
  I also do not use an external monitor for this reason. I like being able to work from anywhere with the same setup. I wanted my productivity to be identical wherever I am. Not using a monitor, I also don't use an external keyboard or mouse. I have an unused monitor on my desk at work I do no plug into.
- netnichols 16y ago
  I'm in the office (with external monitor) half the time and working from home (without external monitor) the other half. It always takes me about a day to get used to the switch. But generally those 2 straight weeks of working on a bigger monitor are worth the acclimation time.
- shawndumas 16y ago
  Use an iPad as a touchable external monitor... http://avatron.com/apps/air-display http://avatron.com/apps/air-display
  - alanfalcon 16y ago
    Holy shit, thank you for this! edit: 5 minutes (and -$10) later, I now have a portable third monitor that I can bring with me anywhere in the house. Plus I can easily test my iPhone app in the simulator using real touch gestures, without building to a device (not every gesture is working, but this is still awesome).
    - deleted 16y ago
      [deleted]
    - shawndumas 16y ago
      My pleasure. I use, and love, it daily btw. For windows it isn't as good so I use http://ipad.displaylink.com/ http://ipad.displaylink.com/
  - codenerdz 16y ago
    This is basically a disguised VNC display. I test drove this app(or its clone) last year and it was noticeably laggy. Maybe things have changed since then...
    - shawndumas 16y ago
      But unlike VNC it extends the desktop.
- enko 16y ago
  I'm the same way. I actually have an external monitor on my desk; it sits unused. I used to use it but over time I became so used to a single screen, and context switching within it, that I don't bother plugging it in any more. Ditto my external keyboard, though I confess to occasionally reaching for my bluetooth mouse. I have co-workers who are the exact opposite; 3 or 4 screens, it's never enough, but I just feel like it's not necessary for me any more. You can only look at one thing at a time. Whether switching your view between monitors, or switching between programs, it's basically the same thing - the difference is, I can do the latter anywhere, and be just as productive in a coffee shop or on a plane. Exceptions would be monitoring a large number of logs, or programs that require large GUIs (Photoshop, music sequencers). There, screen real estate is important. But for programming? Not for me.
  - swah 16y ago
    This would be true for me if not... RSI. Alt-tab gets painful.
    - elviejo 16y ago
      for RSI you can try switching to Dvorak keyboard. It really helped me.
      - swah 16y ago
        With alt-tab?
- jackseviltwin 16y ago
  I use an external monitor at home on my MBA and I used to find it really annoying to resize all my windows every time I connected or disconnected my 24" monitor. Then I found Stay: https://cordlessdog.com/stay/ https://cordlessdog.com/stay/ This $15 app remembers window positions and sizes for each application and display setup (and even combos with multi monitors). It'll even restore window positions when you connect/disconnect external monitors. I have had a few issues where it can't figure out TotalFinder and Terminal (because of the tabs) window positions and sometimes it can't figure out which Chrome window is which, but overall it's made switching between external monitors a whole lot less painful.
chrismealy 16y ago
What kind of monitors are those?
- chime 16y ago
  Samsung 22" (2243: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0012TTX2O/ref=cm_rdp_product http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0012TTX2O/ref=cm_rdp_produ...)
brk 16y ago
You can have multiple external monitors. Check out the Matrx dual/triple head to go setups. Been using a triple head for a while now. http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/products/gxm/th2go/ http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/products/gxm/th2go/

by chime 16y ago

bergie 16y ago

I'm the only one in our company not using any external monitors. The added screen real estate would be nice, but the downside is that then you have a different setup in the office and on the road. I rather get used to a single screen I always have with me.

jonhohle 16y ago
You can plug in an external screen into your laptop. Sometimes I use just an external display with my laptop; sometimes I use it as a second (primary) monitor.
- bergie 16y ago
  I know I can, but I want to keep the working setup exactly same regardless of whether I'm at my desk or in a train
devinfoley 16y ago
I've thought of ditching my monitor for this reason many times.
Braxo 16y ago
I also do not use an external monitor for this reason. I like being able to work from anywhere with the same setup. I wanted my productivity to be identical wherever I am. Not using a monitor, I also don't use an external keyboard or mouse. I have an unused monitor on my desk at work I do no plug into.
netnichols 16y ago
I'm in the office (with external monitor) half the time and working from home (without external monitor) the other half. It always takes me about a day to get used to the switch. But generally those 2 straight weeks of working on a bigger monitor are worth the acclimation time.
shawndumas 16y ago
Use an iPad as a touchable external monitor... http://avatron.com/apps/air-display http://avatron.com/apps/air-display
- alanfalcon 16y ago
  Holy shit, thank you for this! edit: 5 minutes (and -$10) later, I now have a portable third monitor that I can bring with me anywhere in the house. Plus I can easily test my iPhone app in the simulator using real touch gestures, without building to a device (not every gesture is working, but this is still awesome).
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
  - shawndumas 16y ago
    My pleasure. I use, and love, it daily btw. For windows it isn't as good so I use http://ipad.displaylink.com/ http://ipad.displaylink.com/
- codenerdz 16y ago
  This is basically a disguised VNC display. I test drove this app(or its clone) last year and it was noticeably laggy. Maybe things have changed since then...
  - shawndumas 16y ago
    But unlike VNC it extends the desktop.
enko 16y ago
I'm the same way. I actually have an external monitor on my desk; it sits unused. I used to use it but over time I became so used to a single screen, and context switching within it, that I don't bother plugging it in any more. Ditto my external keyboard, though I confess to occasionally reaching for my bluetooth mouse. I have co-workers who are the exact opposite; 3 or 4 screens, it's never enough, but I just feel like it's not necessary for me any more. You can only look at one thing at a time. Whether switching your view between monitors, or switching between programs, it's basically the same thing - the difference is, I can do the latter anywhere, and be just as productive in a coffee shop or on a plane. Exceptions would be monitoring a large number of logs, or programs that require large GUIs (Photoshop, music sequencers). There, screen real estate is important. But for programming? Not for me.
- swah 16y ago
  This would be true for me if not... RSI. Alt-tab gets painful.
  - elviejo 16y ago
    for RSI you can try switching to Dvorak keyboard. It really helped me.
    - swah 16y ago
      With alt-tab?
jackseviltwin 16y ago
I use an external monitor at home on my MBA and I used to find it really annoying to resize all my windows every time I connected or disconnected my 24" monitor. Then I found Stay: https://cordlessdog.com/stay/ https://cordlessdog.com/stay/ This $15 app remembers window positions and sizes for each application and display setup (and even combos with multi monitors). It'll even restore window positions when you connect/disconnect external monitors. I have had a few issues where it can't figure out TotalFinder and Terminal (because of the tabs) window positions and sometimes it can't figure out which Chrome window is which, but overall it's made switching between external monitors a whole lot less painful.

chrismealy 16y ago

What kind of monitors are those?

chime 16y ago
Samsung 22" (2243: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0012TTX2O/ref=cm_rdp_product http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0012TTX2O/ref=cm_rdp_produ...)

brk 16y ago

You can have multiple external monitors. Check out the Matrx dual/triple head to go setups. Been using a triple head for a while now. http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/products/gxm/th2go/ http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/products/gxm/th2go/