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A cynical answer would be that it generates pageviews and discussion. If the article was just "ASUS Zenbook--it's okay but not brilliant", it would not have got

by tikhonj 15y ago

A cynical answer would be that it generates pageviews and discussion. If the article was just "ASUS Zenbook--it's okay but not brilliant", it would not have gotten onto hn at all, and if it did I certainly wouldn't be discussing it quite as fervently. I doubt the author consciously planned it this way; however, it's perfectly reasonable that he subconsciously wanted to make a more striking point but unfortunately came over as overly antagonistic.

gurkendoktor 15y ago
I disagree. A MacBook Air with an unusable trackpad is emphatically not okay- it's absolutely worthless, ruined by one component. (At least if you don't fall into the USB-mouse-on-a-laptop camp.) The MacBook Air was never about specs, where the Zenbook might be okay (except for weight and height).
- tikhonj 15y ago
  Or if you fall into the power-user camp that uses the keyboard almost exclusively like I do (this is both with a nice touchpad and even on desktops with a physical mouse). The newer touchpads like the ones on my laptop and Macs are okay, but constantly switching between that and the keyboard is ultimately slower than just using the keyboard. Once you get used to navigating around with the keyboard as much as possible--assuming your OS supports it well--the quality of a touchpad stops mattering. I am now consistently annoyed by web apps and programs that force me to use the mouse unless I really have to. Ultimately though, my point wasn't really so much about the laptop as about the tone of the article, which your post doesn't seem to address. Even if the Asus deserves derision, and antagonistic response is still not necessary, and still generates more views and comments. The worst bit is that--by virtue of replying here and commenting on the thread--I've shown that his tactics are successful.
  - gurkendoktor 15y ago
    Upvoted because I totally forgot about keyboard-only ninjas. The title itself I think is not too bad, but after seeing the URL slug, I tend to agree on the childish tone.

by tikhonj 15y ago

gurkendoktor 15y ago

I disagree. A MacBook Air with an unusable trackpad is emphatically not okay- it's absolutely worthless, ruined by one component. (At least if you don't fall into the USB-mouse-on-a-laptop camp.) The MacBook Air was never about specs, where the Zenbook might be okay (except for weight and height).

tikhonj 15y ago
Or if you fall into the power-user camp that uses the keyboard almost exclusively like I do (this is both with a nice touchpad and even on desktops with a physical mouse). The newer touchpads like the ones on my laptop and Macs are okay, but constantly switching between that and the keyboard is ultimately slower than just using the keyboard. Once you get used to navigating around with the keyboard as much as possible--assuming your OS supports it well--the quality of a touchpad stops mattering. I am now consistently annoyed by web apps and programs that force me to use the mouse unless I really have to. Ultimately though, my point wasn't really so much about the laptop as about the tone of the article, which your post doesn't seem to address. Even if the Asus deserves derision, and antagonistic response is still not necessary, and still generates more views and comments. The worst bit is that--by virtue of replying here and commenting on the thread--I've shown that his tactics are successful.
- gurkendoktor 15y ago
  Upvoted because I totally forgot about keyboard-only ninjas. The title itself I think is not too bad, but after seeing the URL slug, I tend to agree on the childish tone.