19 ms·

How about a laptop with a better key board, slim figure, larger special character keys and more feedback for keys? Then shove a great processor, a mouse pad th

How about a laptop with a better key board, slim figure, larger special character keys and more feedback for keys? Then shove a great processor, a mouse pad that's not accidentally click able while typing, and a high resolution screen. That's a developer laptop. Ill install my own software, Thank you very much.

jmsduran 14y ago
What you are describing sounds like my 5 year-old HP DV9000. The keyboard & track-pad were surprisingly of very high quality, very close to that of Apple's IMO. Too bad though the hardware & chasis design of the product line was extremely shoddy & defective; if the notebook didn't fry itself so often it probably would've been noticed more.
- commandar 14y ago
  The DV9000s also had a terrible hinge design which was highly prone to breaking. The hinge itself would snap because it was made out of cheap pot metal and the 17" display put a lot of leverage on it. To make matters worse, the hinge secured directly to the bezel and top cover; when the hinge broke, it'd generally break both those parts as well. Even if you were to DIY the repair, you were looking at $150-200 in parts from HP.
- gbog 14y ago
  Everybody is praising Apple keyboards here. Strange thing is at my work place many have a "real" keyboard beside their MBA or MB.
  - gurkendoktor 14y ago
    Why? Do they use it when the laptop is closed? Did they miss a numpad? Did all their keys pop off and the devices are out of warranty? Is it about the "click" feeling? I haven't seen this so I am curious. The biggest bummer for me about Apple is the lack of a USB external trackpad.
    - nikatwork 14y ago
      Is this what you're looking for? http://www.apple.com/magictrackpad/ http://www.apple.com/magictrackpad/
      - zalyh 14y ago
        I think gurkendoktor is looking for a USB(wired) trackpad. The Magic Trackpad can only interface via Bluetooth.
        gurkendoktor 14y ago
        Right. BT is annoying when changing operating systems or computers and batteries are bad for the environment and always run out at the wrong time. I went with the Magic Trackpad though.
    - gbog 14y ago
      I guess it is about the click feeling and proper position of the hands.
- krakensden 14y ago
  Speaking of frying itself, when mine got hot the keyboard stopped working reliably, and it got hot easily and often.
simonsarris 14y ago
I agree that all your points are far more important than whatever image is pre-loaded. At the very least a laptop designed for developers ought to keep the Insert/Home/PageUp + Delete/End/PageDown cluster in the normal formation, like Thinkpads do. We are typists before we are programmers, and software is something we do have control over. Dell should be fretting over the things we don't have the ability to change on a lark.
- protomyth 14y ago
  At least they centered the touchpad and set the keyboard so I can touch type from a center position (no numeric keypad).
  - redthrowaway 14y ago
    Lack of numpad is a matter of personal preference. I love it and use it almost exclusively, so lack of one is a big deal for me.
    - protomyth 14y ago
      My problem with a numpad on a laptop is where I center myself. If you center on on the keyboard so you aren't typing "side-ways" then the numpad means you're head is tilted to center of screen or you're looking directly at the left of the screen.
- tammer 14y ago
  Like thinkpads did... the ivy bridge models soon to be announced use a new layout. While the chicklet keyboards are largely an improvement (I've tried an E420 for a few moments and love the wider spacing), losing that row will take some getting used to.
  - commandar 14y ago
    I think I must be the only person out there that can't stand chiclet keyboards. One of the many reasons I'm interested in the upcoming Vizio thin+light notebooks is because they're not using chiclets.
sophacles 14y ago
On top of that, I will never consider switching away from my Macbook until the following things are true: * battery will last several hours (macbook still at 4+ hrs on full charge and it is 1.5 yrs old) * very good (open) acpi support - if I can't 100% trust closing and opening to just suspend and resume correctly, I won't use it for anything other than toy purposes. (and open because I will be using my own kernel, or at least my own install of a distro, so it needs to be supported or at least compilable for every kernel).
- thrill 14y ago
  I'm using Ubunutu 12.04 (and learning to love the bomb, err, Unity) on a Samsung 15-inch Series 9, and those things you mention work fine. Small irritants include a screen of less quality than I expected (vertical viewing angle is minimal), a keyboard that is more noisy than I wish, and a touchpad that I can't get to disable during typing. But it's fast, quiet, large-screened and has more than enough horsepower for development (using it for Google App Engine work right now).
  - technomancy 14y ago
    FWIW I've got the 13-inch Series 9 on Debian, and everything just works, including disabling the touchpad with a keystroke. What I'd really like is to be able to disable touchpad clicks without disabling scrolling, but I understand if I'm on my own for that one.
    - Zak 14y ago
      I can disable touchpad clicks but not scrolling using synclient on my Thinkpad. In fact, I configured the whole thing to act as a scroll surface and nothing else.
  - keeperofdakeys 14y ago
    You should look into syndaemon. This will disable the touchpad when you are typing. https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Touchpad_Synaptics#Disable_Trackpad_while_Typing https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Touchpad_Synaptics#Disa... Also, the screen on the Series 9 is one of the better screens out there. Also, I don't find the keyboard on my 13" loud though.
Zak 14y ago
How about taller and higher-resolution screens while we're at it? 16:9 "HD" is fine for movies, but not exactly optimal for development. Right now the portable computer with the highest screen resolution is the iPad. I'm using a Thinkpad T61 because it's the only laptop I know of with a 4:3 screen that can take 8gb of memory.
- arunoda 14y ago
  es you are correct. We need 4:3 laptops. I hate these HD screens.
encoderer 14y ago
I went shopping a couple weeks ago for a MacBook Air to replace my 15" MBP as my primary development machine. (The endorsement a couple weeks before from Linus about the simplicity and silence of the Air sold me) I picked it up at BestBuy and when I was there I glanced at their Ultrabooks display. They had 3. The Asus and Toshiba seemed complete crap. Flimsy. Trash. The only one that seemed a plausible purchase was the Samsung. I wasn't a persuadable customer: I'm not going to switch my platform choice because of one credible alternative. But for those customers that are, I think it's fantastic that they at least have 1 credible windows 7 alternative to an Air. (Not that it matters, but if you're interested, this MBP is a work-supplied machine and it's the first Mac I've ever used. My other PC is a sony vaio core 2 duo circa 2008 or so running Windows 7. I was very impressed with Windows 7 when it came out. But as an engineer it's only a credible option because I was running a Ubuntu VM. When I took my current job and had my choice of machine I finally took the plunge and I've loved it ever since. I still use Ubuntu VM's for sharing dev environments but having a fantastic terminal app and a clean experience is something I have no interest in giving up. Thus, i'm not a persuadable.)
- nodata 14y ago
  Two questions: 1. Are you happy with the Air versus the MBP? 2. Seems a strange time to buy. Why not buy in six months time?
  - encoderer 14y ago
    > 1. Are you happy with the Air versus the MBP? Yes. Very. Largely due to portability but also because the Pro didn't have an SSD. The pro was about 18 months old so it had similar specs in other aspects but no SSD. I wouldn't hate more RAM of course. But the SSD in here is anecdotally faster than an aftermarket SSD I installed in a windows machine last year and it definitely helps you overlook the 4GB limit. > 2. Seems a strange time to buy. Why not buy in six months time? I have a zen about these things. There will always be something right around the corner.
joe_the_user 14y ago
A Linux laptop should be a good laptop. But we should be aware that having Linux pre-installed does make a difference. A) You'll either pay the Microsoft tax or have Linux pre-installed, possibly both depending how how deep MS' hooks are. B) Having all the drivers work is important, especially modern laptops will often switch their peripheral chips without changing even model # so there.
- fractallyte 14y ago
  Sigh. I wish more end users would consider option C: Ask nicely for a laptop with no OS. When the reply is 'No', return/wipe the Microsoft default, carefully documenting your refusal of the End User License Agreement, and ask for your money back on the OS. (They'll still say 'No'.) Be firm, be persistent, and even go as far as issuing a Small Claim. They will ultimately accede, because the law is on your side. No one need pay the Microsoft tax.
  - lmz 14y ago
    Doesn't that mean you're paying the tax with your time instead?
  - Tyrannosaurs 14y ago
    Doesn't an OEM Windows license cost something like $20? It's certainly way less than a shrink wrap copy. To me that sounds like a whole load of work for not that much money. If I don't want it I'd just order the cheapest most basic version of Windows I could, wipe it and move on.
    - slowpoke 14y ago
      This isn't really a matter of money for many people. It's a matter of ethics (or principle, if that's too strong of a word for your tastes). I consider it highly anti-competitive to force people to buy an OS with their computer. It doesn't matter if you're a GNU/Linux person or simply already have a Windows license - it's forcing you to pay for something you don't want and don't need. And even if you want or need an OS with your computer (which many people, in fact, do), it should be an option[1], not forced upon you. As far as I'm concerned, this should be illegal by consumer protection laws. In fact, there is a consumer protection directive in the EU that does just that - forbid unlawful bundling. It's just that no one knows and no one gives a shit, and here in Germany, there's a saying: "Wo kein Klaeger, da kein Richter." - "Where there's no complainant, there's no judge.". So, become a complainant. It's your good right, and those companies like Lenovo know it - that's why they make the process of getting a refund as arcane and customer-hostile as possible.[2] Most people will just bite it and silently pay the Windows tax, further fueling this vicious circle and the Microsoft monopoly. [1]: For all I care OEMs can make it the default option, as long as I can choose "No OS" or "Preinstalled $distribution" - I don't care as long as I'm not forced to pay for something I ultimately won't use. [2]: I had a slightly older (2008) mailing list post on (I think) Google Groups about refunds from Lenovo Germanu somewhere, but I seem to have lost the link. It included contact details for a guy at Lenovo Germany who apparently was responsible for granting refunds, but it took the author of the mail hours to get this information from the from the various hotlines.
rdtsc 14y ago
Thinkpad (T60) has a great keyboard, good feedback. I don't use the mousepad, I like the little red pointer thingy it has and has 1400x1050 resolution display. It also a mate display (not the glare type). It is bulkier than other laptops and by now its processor is behind the latest i7 and i5's. Also as soon as I got I installed Ubuntu on it. Ubuntu lets me re-map caps lock to a control for my emacs usage. And most of all this machine has worked great for many years . It has traveled with me, has been banged up, dropped, had hot liquids spilled on it and it still works.
- bfrs 14y ago
  Don't you get too much strain on your left pinky if you remap CapsLock to Ctrl? I shifted to: CapsLock -> Enter Keys next to spacebar -> Ctrl This feels a whole lot better. As Xah Lee [1] points out, the original symbolics keyboard that Stallman developed emacs on, had Ctrl keys next to the space bar. [1] http://xahlee.org/emacs/emacs_kb_shortcuts_pain.html http://xahlee.org/emacs/emacs_kb_shortcuts_pain.html
  - kleiba 14y ago
    I read Xah Lee's article a good while ago. Emacs is the program I spend >90% of my time in, I first encountered it on a SUN Sparc Classic. If my memory serves me right, the SUN keyboard had META close to space and CTRL under the TAB key (where PC keyboard have CAPS LOCK). So, naturally, I grew up with the control key in that position. When using Emacs on a PC, for the longest time I didn't remap CTRL and with the default position Emacs becomes quite awkward to use. On a PC keyboard, I used to have pinkie strain a lot when doing lots of coding. But these days I spend most of my computing time in front of my Dell Netbook and the keyboard size is ideal for this key mapping - so nice, in fact, that I'm wondering whether there are any external netbook-sized keyboards that I could use with my desktop PC. Another comment on this page complains about the arrangements of the HOME/END/INSERT/DELETE keys etc. on most laptop keyboards. I've got to say that I basically never use them. Even though the SUN Sparc keyboard had arrow keys, at some point I disabled them on my keyboard to force myself to learn Emacs' native shortcuts for moving the point. Now my hands hardly ever have to leave the home row.
mbell 14y ago
> Then shove a great processor, a mouse pad that's not accidentally click able while typing, and a high resolution screen. Agreed, although I don't consider the processor all that important. I run out of ram way before I can exhaust the CPU capabilities in the current generation of "ultrabooks". I want a 13" macbook air or something of similar build quality with a higher res screen and 8-16GB of ram.
yungchin 14y ago
It looks like Dell has set up a "storm session" where they'll take our feedback/suggestions, here: http://www.ideastorm.com/Idea2SessionIdea?v=1336432210237&id=a017000000hIx3bAAC http://www.ideastorm.com/Idea2SessionIdea?v=1336432210237&#3...
tseabrooks 14y ago
Hands down the most important part of this comment is the touch pad. It's a real struggle to find a decent touch pad aside from you know who.
- Zak 14y ago
  I still like the Thinkpad's trackpoint, and have the pad set to scroll-only.I can comfortably mouse and scroll without moving my hands from my typing position.
pmr_ 14y ago
I own a XPS15z but I was never able to put what is wrong with it so succinctly. I absolutely don't get what's with the pre-installed software thing, I can do that myself. What I need is full-driver support and some basic information of what is known to work. I don't expect them to maintain a full Linux compatibility list, but just a simple list that says: With this specific kernel and this mainstream distro, those things don't work out of the box. You need one intern for about two days to do that. Throw in exact specs and I can figure out a lot of things for myself.
BadassFractal 14y ago
You hit the nail on the head there. My ideal hacker laptop would have something like: Realforce 87U keyboard 2x (yeah they do exist I think) 1920x1200 screens, perhaps with really high PPI like the new ones Apple is releasing soon. No touchpad (I'm quite happy with plugging in a mouse), I'd rather use a nipple. Light, lots of battery, no need for a fancy graphics card. Decent CPU, doesn't have to be extreme. Tons of memory, 16gb at least, the more the better. No software at all. I'll install my own distro.
goatslacker 14y ago
I will trade in most of that for just a matte screen. I read code all day and I like my terminal black. Most laptops nowadays function as mirrors instead of laptops.
revorad 14y ago
I'm trying to bring this to market, first in the form of Thinkpads, but possibly other models too (including our own in the future). If anyone's interested, please sign up here - http://giniji.com http://giniji.com

jmsduran 14y ago

What you are describing sounds like my 5 year-old HP DV9000. The keyboard & track-pad were surprisingly of very high quality, very close to that of Apple's IMO. Too bad though the hardware & chasis design of the product line was extremely shoddy & defective; if the notebook didn't fry itself so often it probably would've been noticed more.

commandar 14y ago
The DV9000s also had a terrible hinge design which was highly prone to breaking. The hinge itself would snap because it was made out of cheap pot metal and the 17" display put a lot of leverage on it. To make matters worse, the hinge secured directly to the bezel and top cover; when the hinge broke, it'd generally break both those parts as well. Even if you were to DIY the repair, you were looking at $150-200 in parts from HP.
gbog 14y ago
Everybody is praising Apple keyboards here. Strange thing is at my work place many have a "real" keyboard beside their MBA or MB.
- gurkendoktor 14y ago
  Why? Do they use it when the laptop is closed? Did they miss a numpad? Did all their keys pop off and the devices are out of warranty? Is it about the "click" feeling? I haven't seen this so I am curious. The biggest bummer for me about Apple is the lack of a USB external trackpad.
  - nikatwork 14y ago
    Is this what you're looking for? http://www.apple.com/magictrackpad/ http://www.apple.com/magictrackpad/
    - zalyh 14y ago
      I think gurkendoktor is looking for a USB(wired) trackpad. The Magic Trackpad can only interface via Bluetooth.
      - gurkendoktor 14y ago
        Right. BT is annoying when changing operating systems or computers and batteries are bad for the environment and always run out at the wrong time. I went with the Magic Trackpad though.
  - gbog 14y ago
    I guess it is about the click feeling and proper position of the hands.
krakensden 14y ago
Speaking of frying itself, when mine got hot the keyboard stopped working reliably, and it got hot easily and often.

simonsarris 14y ago

I agree that all your points are far more important than whatever image is pre-loaded. At the very least a laptop designed for developers ought to keep the Insert/Home/PageUp + Delete/End/PageDown cluster in the normal formation, like Thinkpads do. We are typists before we are programmers, and software is something we do have control over. Dell should be fretting over the things we don't have the ability to change on a lark.

protomyth 14y ago
At least they centered the touchpad and set the keyboard so I can touch type from a center position (no numeric keypad).
- redthrowaway 14y ago
  Lack of numpad is a matter of personal preference. I love it and use it almost exclusively, so lack of one is a big deal for me.
  - protomyth 14y ago
    My problem with a numpad on a laptop is where I center myself. If you center on on the keyboard so you aren't typing "side-ways" then the numpad means you're head is tilted to center of screen or you're looking directly at the left of the screen.
tammer 14y ago
Like thinkpads did... the ivy bridge models soon to be announced use a new layout. While the chicklet keyboards are largely an improvement (I've tried an E420 for a few moments and love the wider spacing), losing that row will take some getting used to.
- commandar 14y ago
  I think I must be the only person out there that can't stand chiclet keyboards. One of the many reasons I'm interested in the upcoming Vizio thin+light notebooks is because they're not using chiclets.

sophacles 14y ago

On top of that, I will never consider switching away from my Macbook until the following things are true: * battery will last several hours (macbook still at 4+ hrs on full charge and it is 1.5 yrs old) * very good (open) acpi support - if I can't 100% trust closing and opening to just suspend and resume correctly, I won't use it for anything other than toy purposes. (and open because I will be using my own kernel, or at least my own install of a distro, so it needs to be supported or at least compilable for every kernel).

thrill 14y ago
I'm using Ubunutu 12.04 (and learning to love the bomb, err, Unity) on a Samsung 15-inch Series 9, and those things you mention work fine. Small irritants include a screen of less quality than I expected (vertical viewing angle is minimal), a keyboard that is more noisy than I wish, and a touchpad that I can't get to disable during typing. But it's fast, quiet, large-screened and has more than enough horsepower for development (using it for Google App Engine work right now).
- technomancy 14y ago
  FWIW I've got the 13-inch Series 9 on Debian, and everything just works, including disabling the touchpad with a keystroke. What I'd really like is to be able to disable touchpad clicks without disabling scrolling, but I understand if I'm on my own for that one.
  - Zak 14y ago
    I can disable touchpad clicks but not scrolling using synclient on my Thinkpad. In fact, I configured the whole thing to act as a scroll surface and nothing else.
- keeperofdakeys 14y ago
  You should look into syndaemon. This will disable the touchpad when you are typing. https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Touchpad_Synaptics#Disable_Trackpad_while_Typing https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Touchpad_Synaptics#Disa... Also, the screen on the Series 9 is one of the better screens out there. Also, I don't find the keyboard on my 13" loud though.

Zak 14y ago

How about taller and higher-resolution screens while we're at it? 16:9 "HD" is fine for movies, but not exactly optimal for development. Right now the portable computer with the highest screen resolution is the iPad. I'm using a Thinkpad T61 because it's the only laptop I know of with a 4:3 screen that can take 8gb of memory.

arunoda 14y ago
es you are correct. We need 4:3 laptops. I hate these HD screens.

encoderer 14y ago

I went shopping a couple weeks ago for a MacBook Air to replace my 15" MBP as my primary development machine. (The endorsement a couple weeks before from Linus about the simplicity and silence of the Air sold me) I picked it up at BestBuy and when I was there I glanced at their Ultrabooks display. They had 3. The Asus and Toshiba seemed complete crap. Flimsy. Trash. The only one that seemed a plausible purchase was the Samsung. I wasn't a persuadable customer: I'm not going to switch my platform choice because of one credible alternative. But for those customers that are, I think it's fantastic that they at least have 1 credible windows 7 alternative to an Air. (Not that it matters, but if you're interested, this MBP is a work-supplied machine and it's the first Mac I've ever used. My other PC is a sony vaio core 2 duo circa 2008 or so running Windows 7. I was very impressed with Windows 7 when it came out. But as an engineer it's only a credible option because I was running a Ubuntu VM. When I took my current job and had my choice of machine I finally took the plunge and I've loved it ever since. I still use Ubuntu VM's for sharing dev environments but having a fantastic terminal app and a clean experience is something I have no interest in giving up. Thus, i'm not a persuadable.)

nodata 14y ago
Two questions: 1. Are you happy with the Air versus the MBP? 2. Seems a strange time to buy. Why not buy in six months time?
- encoderer 14y ago
  > 1. Are you happy with the Air versus the MBP? Yes. Very. Largely due to portability but also because the Pro didn't have an SSD. The pro was about 18 months old so it had similar specs in other aspects but no SSD. I wouldn't hate more RAM of course. But the SSD in here is anecdotally faster than an aftermarket SSD I installed in a windows machine last year and it definitely helps you overlook the 4GB limit. > 2. Seems a strange time to buy. Why not buy in six months time? I have a zen about these things. There will always be something right around the corner.

joe_the_user 14y ago

A Linux laptop should be a good laptop. But we should be aware that having Linux pre-installed does make a difference. A) You'll either pay the Microsoft tax or have Linux pre-installed, possibly both depending how how deep MS' hooks are. B) Having all the drivers work is important, especially modern laptops will often switch their peripheral chips without changing even model # so there.

fractallyte 14y ago
Sigh. I wish more end users would consider option C: Ask nicely for a laptop with no OS. When the reply is 'No', return/wipe the Microsoft default, carefully documenting your refusal of the End User License Agreement, and ask for your money back on the OS. (They'll still say 'No'.) Be firm, be persistent, and even go as far as issuing a Small Claim. They will ultimately accede, because the law is on your side. No one need pay the Microsoft tax.
- lmz 14y ago
  Doesn't that mean you're paying the tax with your time instead?
- Tyrannosaurs 14y ago
  Doesn't an OEM Windows license cost something like $20? It's certainly way less than a shrink wrap copy. To me that sounds like a whole load of work for not that much money. If I don't want it I'd just order the cheapest most basic version of Windows I could, wipe it and move on.
  - slowpoke 14y ago
    This isn't really a matter of money for many people. It's a matter of ethics (or principle, if that's too strong of a word for your tastes). I consider it highly anti-competitive to force people to buy an OS with their computer. It doesn't matter if you're a GNU/Linux person or simply already have a Windows license - it's forcing you to pay for something you don't want and don't need. And even if you want or need an OS with your computer (which many people, in fact, do), it should be an option[1], not forced upon you. As far as I'm concerned, this should be illegal by consumer protection laws. In fact, there is a consumer protection directive in the EU that does just that - forbid unlawful bundling. It's just that no one knows and no one gives a shit, and here in Germany, there's a saying: "Wo kein Klaeger, da kein Richter." - "Where there's no complainant, there's no judge.". So, become a complainant. It's your good right, and those companies like Lenovo know it - that's why they make the process of getting a refund as arcane and customer-hostile as possible.[2] Most people will just bite it and silently pay the Windows tax, further fueling this vicious circle and the Microsoft monopoly. [1]: For all I care OEMs can make it the default option, as long as I can choose "No OS" or "Preinstalled $distribution" - I don't care as long as I'm not forced to pay for something I ultimately won't use. [2]: I had a slightly older (2008) mailing list post on (I think) Google Groups about refunds from Lenovo Germanu somewhere, but I seem to have lost the link. It included contact details for a guy at Lenovo Germany who apparently was responsible for granting refunds, but it took the author of the mail hours to get this information from the from the various hotlines.

rdtsc 14y ago

Thinkpad (T60) has a great keyboard, good feedback. I don't use the mousepad, I like the little red pointer thingy it has and has 1400x1050 resolution display. It also a mate display (not the glare type). It is bulkier than other laptops and by now its processor is behind the latest i7 and i5's. Also as soon as I got I installed Ubuntu on it. Ubuntu lets me re-map caps lock to a control for my emacs usage. And most of all this machine has worked great for many years . It has traveled with me, has been banged up, dropped, had hot liquids spilled on it and it still works.

bfrs 14y ago
Don't you get too much strain on your left pinky if you remap CapsLock to Ctrl? I shifted to: CapsLock -> Enter Keys next to spacebar -> Ctrl This feels a whole lot better. As Xah Lee [1] points out, the original symbolics keyboard that Stallman developed emacs on, had Ctrl keys next to the space bar. [1] http://xahlee.org/emacs/emacs_kb_shortcuts_pain.html http://xahlee.org/emacs/emacs_kb_shortcuts_pain.html
- kleiba 14y ago
  I read Xah Lee's article a good while ago. Emacs is the program I spend >90% of my time in, I first encountered it on a SUN Sparc Classic. If my memory serves me right, the SUN keyboard had META close to space and CTRL under the TAB key (where PC keyboard have CAPS LOCK). So, naturally, I grew up with the control key in that position. When using Emacs on a PC, for the longest time I didn't remap CTRL and with the default position Emacs becomes quite awkward to use. On a PC keyboard, I used to have pinkie strain a lot when doing lots of coding. But these days I spend most of my computing time in front of my Dell Netbook and the keyboard size is ideal for this key mapping - so nice, in fact, that I'm wondering whether there are any external netbook-sized keyboards that I could use with my desktop PC. Another comment on this page complains about the arrangements of the HOME/END/INSERT/DELETE keys etc. on most laptop keyboards. I've got to say that I basically never use them. Even though the SUN Sparc keyboard had arrow keys, at some point I disabled them on my keyboard to force myself to learn Emacs' native shortcuts for moving the point. Now my hands hardly ever have to leave the home row.

mbell 14y ago

> Then shove a great processor, a mouse pad that's not accidentally click able while typing, and a high resolution screen. Agreed, although I don't consider the processor all that important. I run out of ram way before I can exhaust the CPU capabilities in the current generation of "ultrabooks". I want a 13" macbook air or something of similar build quality with a higher res screen and 8-16GB of ram.

yungchin 14y ago

It looks like Dell has set up a "storm session" where they'll take our feedback/suggestions, here: http://www.ideastorm.com/Idea2SessionIdea?v=1336432210237&id=a017000000hIx3bAAC http://www.ideastorm.com/Idea2SessionIdea?v=1336432210237&#3...

tseabrooks 14y ago

Hands down the most important part of this comment is the touch pad. It's a real struggle to find a decent touch pad aside from you know who.

Zak 14y ago
I still like the Thinkpad's trackpoint, and have the pad set to scroll-only.I can comfortably mouse and scroll without moving my hands from my typing position.

pmr_ 14y ago

I own a XPS15z but I was never able to put what is wrong with it so succinctly. I absolutely don't get what's with the pre-installed software thing, I can do that myself. What I need is full-driver support and some basic information of what is known to work. I don't expect them to maintain a full Linux compatibility list, but just a simple list that says: With this specific kernel and this mainstream distro, those things don't work out of the box. You need one intern for about two days to do that. Throw in exact specs and I can figure out a lot of things for myself.

BadassFractal 14y ago

You hit the nail on the head there. My ideal hacker laptop would have something like: Realforce 87U keyboard 2x (yeah they do exist I think) 1920x1200 screens, perhaps with really high PPI like the new ones Apple is releasing soon. No touchpad (I'm quite happy with plugging in a mouse), I'd rather use a nipple. Light, lots of battery, no need for a fancy graphics card. Decent CPU, doesn't have to be extreme. Tons of memory, 16gb at least, the more the better. No software at all. I'll install my own distro.

goatslacker 14y ago

I will trade in most of that for just a matte screen. I read code all day and I like my terminal black. Most laptops nowadays function as mirrors instead of laptops.

revorad 14y ago

I'm trying to bring this to market, first in the form of Thinkpads, but possibly other models too (including our own in the future). If anyone's interested, please sign up here - http://giniji.com http://giniji.com