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Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

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Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#171

Post by dsrguru »

kamechan wrote: post #107
wyclif wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, the old-school ThinkPad keyboards were the best you could get on a laptop. Chiclet keyboards are made for non-touch typists, the kind of people who need to hunt and peck with big fat fingers. My fave keyboard is my Unicomp Linux model, with the Caps Lock and Ctrl keys swapped...but best of all, with positive keyclick and actual mechanical switches under each key instead of dopey, squishy foam like what you get w…

I thought this for a while as well, but I wouldn't put it past manufacturers to have done some comprehensive testing before just moving to island-style keyboards. I prefer the thinkpad keyboards myself and use a mechanical keyboard on my desktop (one which I consider to have the best tactile feedback available: a Topre Realforce). However, as a dvorak touch-typist I was curious to find out just how well different key…

I just got 114wpm random on a ThinkPad T400 using a qwerty layout (note that all the keys I mention below assume a qwerty layout). I couldn't find a non-random option on that site. I prefer the feel of the MacBook-style keyboards, and I think I'm more accurate on them, but I don't have one in front of me right now to test my speed. I might be faster on a ThinkPad.

For me, one of the biggest factors in choosing a keyboard is if it has a right control key directly under the forward slash. I use the key to the left of the A (Caps Lock on my ThinkPad) as my left control key when a key chord involves a letter on the right hand side of the keyboard (e.g. C-u in qwerty), but I still use my right control key in chords whose letter is on the left side of the keyboard (e.g. C-a). I've considered trying to get used to using the left control key all the time to preserve my right pinky and to faciliate the adoption of new keyboards (e.g. MacBook), but I'm not there yet.

Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#172

Post by slowpoke »

Tyrannosaurs wrote: post #170
fractallyte wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 on…

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.

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.

Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#173

Post by dsrguru »

Linux developers by and large don't care what distro or software comes preloaded. They intend to replace it with their favorite setup the moment they take the machine out of the box. What they want is a keyboard designed for productivity and hardware that is fully compatible with the Linux kernel. Some will only use free (libre) drivers. Some want a large touchpad, others just want a pointing stick, and others don't use a pointing device at all. Many want easy access to the inside of their computer. Then there are always the regular consumer issues like how pretty the machine is, does it have bluetooth, an optical drive, etc. All laptops have a tradeoff among portability (size and battery), performance (CPU, GPU, RAM, and display), and price (low is good). Most great laptops only excel in two of those categories. Different developers choose a different two.

Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#175

Post by arunoda »

Zak wrote: post #50
ntkachov wrote: post #6

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.

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.

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

Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#176

Post by zalyh »

nikatwork wrote: post #145
gurkendoktor wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

Is this what you're looking for? http://www.apple.com/magictrackpad/

I think gurkendoktor is looking for a USB(wired) trackpad. The Magic Trackpad can only interface via Bluetooth.

Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#177

Post by jakeonthemove »

dlwh wrote: post #109
jakeonthemove wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They all say that - I'm 99% sure you can install at least 6 GB, if not more...

Aren't the ram chips usually soldered to the mobo on ultrabooks? Crucial indicates they can't upgrade ram on the XPS13. And a little googling says soldered RAM... Nothing on the Dell website suggests they can upgrade past 4.

Damn, you're right, the XPS 13 is non-upgradeable. the Samsung Series 9 and Series 5, as well as the Toshiba Z830 are, though...

Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#178

Post by DennisP »

simonsarris wrote: post #12
ntkachov wrote: post #6

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.

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…

That may be a requirement for developers who don't use Vim. I can't remember the last time I used any of those keys.

Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#179

Post by davidw »

jamesbritt wrote: post #119
davidw wrote: post #47

In the spirit of... well... "thinking differently" we might call it, I'll actually say I'm pretty happy with the Dells I've had. They're solid workhorses with relatively good value for the money I spent on them. Certainly, they are not glamorous or beautiful, but they work well, have good support, and have generally run Ubuntu pretty well. That said, if someone came along and really did good Linux support, I'd probab…

I've been pretty happy with my Dell laptops, running Ubuntu. But they lost me when they dropped WUXGA. That extra 200-pixel row may not matter to folks using their machine to watch movies, but it's missing developer real estate to me.

Ouch, they have? That does stink, I have one of those, and love it. Sigh...

Re: Dell Announces A Linux Laptop Designed For Developers

#180

Post by kamechan »

BadassFractal wrote: post #151
kamechan wrote: post #143

Earlier quoted context omitted.

if you don't mind having a 10-key you can get a realforce 103 for $235 from elite keyboards. The switches supposedly have a 30 million press lifecycle, significantly higher than most keyboards, so it should last many years. I bought both an 87UB (the $400 one) and a 103UB, and kept the 103UB because I both prefer the feeling of it over the 87, and also discovered that I like having a 10-key again. Had pretty much aba…

The 103 feels different, as far as keys go? I'm a bit surprised, I thought they were made exactly the same. What's the perceived difference?

well, for one the space bars are at different angles. the space bar on the 87 is a bit sharper and digs into your thumbs unless you use the feet to tilt the keyboard, which i prefer not using. secondly, though both keyboards use topre switches, the 87 is made by leopold for topre whereas the 103 is made by topre in japan ... the build quality on the 103 seems better and the keycaps on the 103 seem a bit more rounded and smooth.

...all purely subjective, of course, but i just prefer the typing experience on the 103 to the 87.

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