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New Surface Pro

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301–310 of 606 posts

Re: New Surface Pro

#301
post #287

Laptop that you can't even put on your lap...

I don't know if you own one or not, but as someone who has owned one for several years now, I can tell you I've NEVER had a problem using mine, with the keyboard, on my lap.

I've had a couple since the original Surface RT and I have a tough time with it. I really don't use the device anymore because balancing it on my lap became really annoying. It's fantastic on a table though.

Re: New Surface Pro

#302
post #76

> The most versatile laptop. ...that doesn't ship with a keyboard (pen isn't included either). No USB-C. 16GB RAM maximum.

They'll "give" you a USB-C dongle. https://www.theverge.com/2017/5/23/15674254/microsoft-surfac... > Microsoft is planning to release a dongle that will plug into the new Surface Pro and Surface Laptop devices and provide USB-C support. It’s like any dongle you’d expect, and it simply slots into the Surface connector port on the device. “If you want to charge a device with a Type-C charger, you can. If you want to pu…

> “If you love Type-C, it means you love dongles,” jokes Panay. “We’re giving a dongle to people who love dongles.”

And of course I would prefer to have a magnetic charging connector over USB-C all day. Makes even more sense if your USB-C is from this very same connector.

Re: New Surface Pro

#303
post #249
post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

seriously... what do people even use usb-a for besides charging things? compatibility was crap, transition to 3.0 was crap and even the highest end computers offered limited ports - opting to keep a few 2.0s given that support for 3.0 on the device side was even weaker, big, asymetric, fragile, ... lets just let it die and move to cables that won't need a dongle and aren't thicker than almost everything in a laptop f…

Mouse, headset, keyboard, gamepad, bluetooth receiver, USB sticks, and yes a phone charger. I have no intention of replacing any of these things until they break, that could be a long, long time.

on desktop, i definitely feel you.

Re: New Surface Pro

#305

These are neat, but expensive. I just ordered a laptop this weekend. * 17.3" 1080p * Core i7 (quad core) * 16GB RAM * Discrete graphics * Backlit keyboard (at no extra charge!) $800 shipped to my door. Only thing I need to do yet is order an M.2 SSD and I'll be happy for the next 4 years. So my heart leaped a little seeing a new Surface announcement, but personally, smaller screens will never work for these tired eye…

That's a really good deal - mind sharing the manufacturer?

Not the OP, but I had a similar deal with a Lenovo P50 during their black Friday sale, 1k USD for 15" quad core i7, discrete graphics, and 256 SSD. I've never seen the OPs price point except for vendors like Sager.

Re: New Surface Pro

#306
post #244
post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

seriously... what do people even use usb-a for besides charging things? compatibility was crap, transition to 3.0 was crap and even the highest end computers offered limited ports - opting to keep a few 2.0s given that support for 3.0 on the device side was even weaker, big, asymetric, fragile, ... lets just let it die and move to cables that won't need a dongle and aren't thicker than almost everything in a laptop f…

I still want to be able to transfer data to/from my phone (S7) and my camera. I still want to use my headset. These things are going to last for several years; as such I'm not buying a laptop without USB-A any time soon.

bluetooth? wifi? the future is wireless (hopefully, imo)

Re: New Surface Pro

#307
post #151
post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Will RAM capacity remain a true valid complaint until the end of time? How much power on one device do we really need in the age of cloud computing and multi-device ownership?

Developers use more memory because it's available. Most developers seem to assume their program is the only program running on the system. This is why my girlfriend can't have multiple browsers open. For a "demanding" workoad (IE; IntelliJ IDE, browser, mail client) windows can easily consume 15/16G already. Personally I use a stripped down linux machine but I'm regularly over 8G, where's the future-proof option?

> IE; IntelliJ IDE, browser, mail client

I run all of that on a 8 GB machine, it works perfectly.

Re: New Surface Pro

#308

No Thunderbolt 3 as the leaks said. Can't buy it for that reason alone​. (Our office goes for TB3 Docks everywhere so Mac and Windows Users can use the same Flex Desks)

Which dock and what has your experience been with them? Seems there are very few out there..

I have a Dell XPS 15 9560 with the TB16 dock. I had tried a couple (Kensington, etc), and had issues (like, buried waaaaay down in the Kensington fine print was the fact that if you had a 4K display, the USB3 ports would "downshift" to USB2, and the GigE port would go to 100mbps...)

The TB16 dock is great though, works seamlessly and smoothly with 4K displays, GigE, supports Power Delivery and remote 'wake' (there's a power button on the dock that if the laptop is sleeping will wake it).

Re: New Surface Pro

#309

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most of what I do is python, but I've done a fair amount of JS, some PHP, Java and others, as needed. I have run VMs on this, but 8GB RAM gets tight, so it's not something I do regularly. I do use Microsofts version of Bash on Ubuntu for things where I am more comfortable with standard linux tools. I use the type cover for almost everything, but I've got a more traditional keyboard hooked up to my dock. The display i…

I am going to start learning Python, then eventually Django in a few weeks on a Surface. What is your overall setup for making it as painless as possible on Windows? I'd say my number 1 frustration in PC devops and I'm trying to figure out the install with the least amount of headaches.

I would recommend Python 3 for sure. I just use the installers from https://www.python.org/ and don't tend to have any problems.

I prefer lightweight tools, so I use Visual Studio Code. It won't hold your hand, but neither will it get in your way.

When working on projects, get in the habit of using virtualenvs. It's a small amount of overhead, but will save you a ton of frustration in the long run. A primer on windows:

From project directory, initialize it:

> python -m venv .env

(I put my virtualenvs in .env out of habit. Virtualenvwrapper, itself a useful addition for managing virtualenvs, puts them in your home directory, which can be fine too.)

Activate it:

> .env\Scripts\activate.bat

Use "pip" to install your dependencies. Also use "pip freeze" to record those dependencies for installations elsewhere. I'm currently following this for dependency management: https://www.kennethreitz.org/essays/a-better-pip-workflow

Re: New Surface Pro

#310

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is not correct. My employer is in New Jersey, I'm in Canada. They purchased me a Surface Pro 3 at my request, and I've never had a problem getting support directly from Microsoft, including 2 48-hour replacements.

It could be like HTCs support, the Vive is only supported in the region in which it was purchased, US, Europe, Asia, etc.

That sounds plausible. I've never needed support off the continent.
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