Laptop Drama
The last month+ has been really frustrating in laptop land.
First, my screen started to get this column of fuzz in the middle of it. Like, if you had an old black-and-white TV (or a CRT that you were trying REALLY hard to get Cinemax on in 1992).
Second, I couldn't really run a lot of programs at the same time. Now, my OH makes fun of me for having 20 Firefox tabs open, sure, but this became an actual problem while I was coding My Lady Gambler. I could have the text open in Word, or I could be doing ePub in Sigil, but I couldn't do both...and certainly not if I wanted to test anything in a previewer like, say, Kindle for PC.
Third, that bizarre column of fuzz on the screen turned to a flickering band of black-and-white-and-red chevrons. Like a demented zebra that didn't want me to have any fun or do any work.
So, over the weekend, I picked out a new laptop. Yes, I was on vacation. Heck, the OH and I went on vacation in a foreign country (i.e., Canada). But we spent most of Thanksgiving and Black Friday in wifi cafes, reading up on various laptop models that fit my needs.
Side note: Why does no laptop maker think there might be a market in LIGHTWEIGHT LAPTOPS. It was my #1 constraining condition (because I have back issues that make carrying things hard, but which mean that walking is good -- so I schlep my laptop a mile or so to a cafe on a near-daily basis). But no. Very few laptops weigh in under 3 lbs. Heck, the "ultraportable" category has changed since my previous purchase. In 2008, "ultraportable" meant "under 4lb." In 2012, it means "under 5 lb." Going backwards, laptop-makers.
Anyway, I'm super excited to say that in a week or so, I should be getting a Lenovo Yoga 13. 3.3 lbs of laplet glory. Where "laplet" is the word I made up to be "laptop that functions as a really big tablet".
First, my screen started to get this column of fuzz in the middle of it. Like, if you had an old black-and-white TV (or a CRT that you were trying REALLY hard to get Cinemax on in 1992).
Second, I couldn't really run a lot of programs at the same time. Now, my OH makes fun of me for having 20 Firefox tabs open, sure, but this became an actual problem while I was coding My Lady Gambler. I could have the text open in Word, or I could be doing ePub in Sigil, but I couldn't do both...and certainly not if I wanted to test anything in a previewer like, say, Kindle for PC.
Third, that bizarre column of fuzz on the screen turned to a flickering band of black-and-white-and-red chevrons. Like a demented zebra that didn't want me to have any fun or do any work.
So, over the weekend, I picked out a new laptop. Yes, I was on vacation. Heck, the OH and I went on vacation in a foreign country (i.e., Canada). But we spent most of Thanksgiving and Black Friday in wifi cafes, reading up on various laptop models that fit my needs.
Side note: Why does no laptop maker think there might be a market in LIGHTWEIGHT LAPTOPS. It was my #1 constraining condition (because I have back issues that make carrying things hard, but which mean that walking is good -- so I schlep my laptop a mile or so to a cafe on a near-daily basis). But no. Very few laptops weigh in under 3 lbs. Heck, the "ultraportable" category has changed since my previous purchase. In 2008, "ultraportable" meant "under 4lb." In 2012, it means "under 5 lb." Going backwards, laptop-makers.
Anyway, I'm super excited to say that in a week or so, I should be getting a Lenovo Yoga 13. 3.3 lbs of laplet glory. Where "laplet" is the word I made up to be "laptop that functions as a really big tablet".