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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

#291

Post by willbw »

titzer wrote: post #248

What's crazy to me is how insanely overspec'd mobile devices are for what they deliver. If you went back in time and told 1999 me the following: I'll give you a computer with the following: * 256GB of solid-state storage * 6 CPUs @ 3+GHz * 8GB of RAM * Weighs only 200 grams * Battery-powered, lasts 5+ hours * 1440 x 3168 resolution display I would have been absolutely gobsmacked. Such a machine absolutely outclasses…

You want to 'develop' on a mobile device? Interested to hear how you would envision this being a pleasant experience.

It's also a trade off between installing what software you want and security - the App store means you don't have to worry about (certain kinds) of maliciousness from software you install.

I just think it's a little bit of a spicy take saying mobile devices "don't deliver" when they are most successful form of computing in history by a large margin. I would argue this is for a reason and they provide enormous value.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#292

Post by jayd16 »

titzer wrote: post #248

What's crazy to me is how insanely overspec'd mobile devices are for what they deliver. If you went back in time and told 1999 me the following: I'll give you a computer with the following: * 256GB of solid-state storage * 6 CPUs @ 3+GHz * 8GB of RAM * Weighs only 200 grams * Battery-powered, lasts 5+ hours * 1440 x 3168 resolution display I would have been absolutely gobsmacked. Such a machine absolutely outclasses…

Its not some big mystery. Its a passively cooled chip, designed for burst performance, with OSes concerned with saving power.

That said, they're not so hard to dev on. You can unlocked bootloader Androids fairly easily.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#293

Post by EdPF »

monoideism wrote: post #30

Instead of blasting UEFI, take a minute to learn about tools like `efibootmgr`, and how to install your own keys, so that you control your own machine. UEFI is a bit overengineered, but it's OK. - Most computers' UEFI firmware, desktop or laptop, allows you to install your own keys. - And every computer I've ever heard of with UEFI will allow you to disable secure boot. - Linux runs just fine on UEFI. I'm worried abo…

Your experience matches mine. And UEFI is more capable if you're interested in a multiboot setup, preserving a recovery partition, and such-like. I've yet to see a UEFI machine where you couldn't shut off secure boot in its firmware/settings menu.

So I was a bit confused when I read the OP.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#294

Post by mypalmike »

WalterBright wrote: post #131
bleepblorp wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't see a lack of USB ports as a complete dealbreaker for using a laptop. USB hubs work fine to attach large numbers of lower-speed USB devices to a laptop.

Not any one thing is a dealbreaker. It's the combination. Once the laptop is festooned with hubs, external drives, cables everywhere, might as well just buy a desktop.

Hub, keyboard, mouse, monitor. There's no festooning.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#295

Post by wisty »

geocrasher wrote: post #5

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…

There's 2 factors, medium and platform.

PC is better for long text. Phones are better for photo / media. Both have pros and cons.

There's also the platform. A lot of phone content ends up siloed into auto-suggesting apps, where click-bait (touch-bait?) tends to just overrun people.

People can now sit for hours just swiping on auto-suggested content. The same can be true for text (see clickbait) but you'd tend to access that through a web browser, where you're just a tab away from something actually useful.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#296

Post by mythrwy »

weare138 wrote: post #191

While were on the subject I'm tired of these BS laptop keyboards. Stop trying to cram a numeric keyboard on there and shifting all the keys and trackpad to the left. It's great for the 1% of the time I need a full size numeric keyboard but sucks for the 99% of the time I don't.

I thought the same thing then I saw an accountant work one of those like Mozart and understood.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#297

Post by smolder »

Aeolun wrote: post #244
sz4kerto wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a >3 year old GPU that's still faster than any mobile GPU. I have been having 64 GB RAM in my desktop for ... 5 years now. Even in the summer my PC is completely quiet, even under heavy load. (Both the GPU and the CPU are water cooled with stock all-in-one coolers.) Desktops are great.

My water cooler is noisy at the fan end. How do you evade that?

You can minimize noise with oversized radiator area and low fan rpm along with good flow/noise ratio fans like noctuas notoriously good 120mm design. You can compensate in one area for another, i.e. by having such a gigantic radiator that fans are hardly needed. Quiet setups cost extra, for sure.

I heard a story about a DIY PC that did nothing but circulate water through the cpu cooler from a fish tank; the tank was big enough to dissipate heat through evaporation and other means, only occasionally needing a top off.

I actually mounted an automotive transmission cooler to the outside of my PC and made it part of the watercooling loop, because it was inexpensive and large. There are no fans on it, but it still reduces the work the standard pc cooling radiator with the fans on it needs to do.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#298

Post by OpticalWindows »

WalterBright wrote: post #16

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…

I'm surprised we havent tried to sell desktop computers with battery packs yet

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#299

Post by pier25 »

willbw wrote: post #291
titzer wrote: post #248

What's crazy to me is how insanely overspec'd mobile devices are for what they deliver. If you went back in time and told 1999 me the following: I'll give you a computer with the following: * 256GB of solid-state storage * 6 CPUs @ 3+GHz * 8GB of RAM * Weighs only 200 grams * Battery-powered, lasts 5+ hours * 1440 x 3168 resolution display I would have been absolutely gobsmacked. Such a machine absolutely outclasses…

You want to 'develop' on a mobile device? Interested to hear how you would envision this being a pleasant experience. It's also a trade off between installing what software you want and security - the App store means you don't have to worry about (certain kinds) of maliciousness from software you install. I just think it's a little bit of a spicy take saying mobile devices "don't deliver" when they are most successfu…

What if you could connect an external display, keyboard, and mouse?

Of course, you need an OS that supports that and provides a proper desktop-like experience.

Re: I am seriously considering going back to desktop computers

#300

Post by ekianjo »

WalterBright wrote: post #16

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. it's more environment friendly, as in you can keep using it for dozens of years just by replacing some parts now and then.
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