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I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

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Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Use a $3,000 gaming laptop. I guarantee it'll stutter and throttle and perfom less well than a same-gen $1,000 PC. More expensive, less performant, and less serviceable with a suite of proprietary bloatware on top.

I usually build a desktop for $4-500, because I reuse parts from the older one, and don't need a gamer graphics card. I blow the money on the mobo, CPU, and lots of ram.

Same, I saved my ssd/hdd, gpu and case and built a ryzen 3700x with 16gb of ram for less than 400 dollars altogether. My 1k USD laptop has half of that computing power, easily.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#222

> I know that new "open" laptops are still available, but most of them--the System76's, the Purisms, etc.--are overpriced in my opinion This quote suggest to me the author is an integral part of the problem. Companies are ALWAYS trying to increase their profitability. If they can lock down the computer, they can drop the price while _increasing_ CLTV. That’s why System76 is more expensive. They’re NOT overpriced. The…

These "open" vendors are selling you machines with a very, very closed Intel Management Engine (IME) or AMD Platform Security Processor (PSP) in it. They're distracting people from the real problem, and doing so is harmful.

Purism physically destroys components that won't run libre firmware.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#223

From the article: "What worries me as much as the end of general-purpose computing for the masses is that so few seem to understand that it is ending." Correction: Has Ended. The vast majority of people using computers has shifted to phones and tablets. I have a friend who's a millenial who barely knows how to use his desktop PC (It's a Mac) but is fluent on his iPad/iPhone. Most people are not content creators, they…

> I have a friend who's a millenial who barely knows how to use his desktop PC (It's a Mac) but is fluent on his iPad/iPhone.

This worries me not because of any open computing concerns, but because of how FUNDAMENTAL general purpose computers are to nearly every decent paying professional job out there. All of them. No one daily drives Excel or Salesforce One or edits video or codes websites or balances accounts in Quickbooks on an iPad. Literally no one; we're decades away from that being mainstream, if it ever happens.

Everyone needs to be computer literate. Being a wiz on your iPhone or iPad does not, in any sense of the word, make you computer literate. Kids growing up with these closed-off devices quite literally destroys the fire of desire for learning how computers work, or even accidentally gaining a glancing knowledge with them enough to hold a good office office job.

Companies like Apple endlessly mouth their desire to get more kids to code, then their arms release devices so closed off that even trying to take a quick peek at how they work triggers eighteen system integrity protection alarms. You can't have it both ways, Apple.

Well, whatever. I don't really care. It just means more ultra high paying jobs for me. Apple (and Google, and to a lesser degree Microsoft) are literally actively sabotaging their own talent pool, guaranteeing that they'll never be able to hire enough people while paying the ones they do hire a ton of money.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#224

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's hard to find a full size bluetooth keyboard. I think I went through every keyboard on Amazon and found only one. If you use a USB wireless keyboard, well, there goes one of the two USB slots on the laptop. It's not just the monitor being big, I want lots and lots of pixels. I'm currently running 3840*2160, and have a second monitor attached set up in portrait mode (so I can display a manual page while I work on…

Are there even any decent BT keyboards at all off the shelf?

Matias' laptop pro ticked all the boxes for me (tenkeyless, full travel, damped ALPS-clone key switches, macOS layout/markings, clunky retro-inspired design, long battery life) and it really was fantastic (though the keys do have a tiny bit of play) but then one of the brightness keys stopped working. :( I'm still using it though.

Prior to that I used Apple keyboards which work fine but have low-travel chiclet-style keys which aren't as nice to type on (they are much quieter for office environments though.)

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#225
post #167

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> when the power goes out. Oh, are you from the US?

Not sure what this means. FWIW, I'm in the UK, and short brown-outs are not uncommon if, for example, the national grid is adapting to a failure somewhere during severe weather. For a while when there was a recurring equipment failure a year or two back, my whole area had several full power cuts, even lasting for multiple hours once or twice, until they finally figured out the root cause and fixed it. The UPSes we ha…

I’m from Denmark and when power went out I was television worthy news. I don’t actually recall it happening more than once. I never experienced a power loss in the five years I lived in France. Now I’m in silicon valley, the tech hub of the world - with 3rd world internet and power that goes out every time the wind blows.

Just reporting facts.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#226

I prefer a desktop because: 1. I like big, big monitors. 2. I prefer a full size keyboard. 3. I prefer a separate mouse. 4. I prefer big freaking disk drives installed. 5. I put the desktop under my desk, and with a wireless keyboard and wireless mouse, there is much less of a snarl on my desk. 6. The desktop has an optical drive I still use. 7. The desktop has lots of USB ports and they're all in use. 8. I can repla…

> 12. My desktop doesn't have a microphone or camera, so they cannot be surreptitiously turned on remotely. Your points are all good but this one gave me pause for thought. We're all working from home and using our microphones and cameras more than ever. I'm using my regular laptop with plug-in microphone and webcam. Are laptop makers thinking in terms of upping the specs on the microphone and webcams in their upcomi…

Apple have made major improvements to their laptop microphones in the last few years. On cameras, while they’re usually very bad right now, laptop cameras will never be great; there’s just no room for the optics in the lid. No laptop has had a lid as thick as a phone in decades.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#227

I prefer a desktop because: 1. I like big, big monitors. 2. I prefer a full size keyboard. 3. I prefer a separate mouse. 4. I prefer big freaking disk drives installed. 5. I put the desktop under my desk, and with a wireless keyboard and wireless mouse, there is much less of a snarl on my desk. 6. The desktop has an optical drive I still use. 7. The desktop has lots of USB ports and they're all in use. 8. I can repla…

13 (and the most important one). Desktop computer can be used at the desk. I don't have to carry it around, nor it distracts me from my "non-computer time" elsewhere.

Desktop computing FTW.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#228

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure. The NVMe that gives you 2GB/s write may throttle to only 500 MB/s after a few seconds of writes, but-- How often is that a problem, really?

Every time you recompile. Many times per day.

Do your compiles write multiple gigabytes of data? Within seconds?

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#229

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Android is still general purpose. I have Termux if I need to compile and run something. I can sideload APKs. I run Windows on desktop for newer games, but quite a few work on my Ubuntu laptop too.

Only if you root. General purpose computers can run alternative OSs.

To be fair, quite a few Android phones have unlockable bootloaders. You go to the manufacturer's website, download a utility or request a code, and you can then also install whichever OS you want.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I guess I'm confident that an open market will always provide for us. I don't know why you think it would not. Right now, today, it has never been easier to just go down to the local mall and buy a general purpose computer, and sure, there are lots of phones, tablets, and consoles on display as well, but there is no less computers as a result.

> I don't know why you think it would not. I don't know why do you think it would? Both software and hardware-side, there's no end of complaints that power users are being left behind. All the money is in making Fisher-Price software for the masses. Ain't nobody have time to cater for ergonomics or efficiency in computing, it's only a distraction from milking the general population. This, to me, is a clear example of…

I run a Linux distro on a Macbook Pro and I disagree with you.

Sure, I'm as annoyed as you and the author about UEFI, but as long as I can install an OSS bootloader and launch whatever I want, I'm good. It may be a pain, but the tinkering capability is still there. If it wasn't possible to tinker with it, less people would buy that laptop.

Having closed hardware is a problem and it definitely doesn't make me feel safe. We may all be full of NSA backdoors, but to be honest I don't care much about it and I assume a large part of the tech knowledgeable feel the same way. I suspect this is why Open Hardware is not more prevalent in the market: not enough interest.

I don't care about computer companies making more user friendly devices; we can find a way to hack whatever or just start buying laptop parts from China and make our own laptops. What worries me is if the government will decide to ban cryptography or introduce regulations that force me to change how I tinker with my computer.

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