Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag? • Hacker News Board

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#211

Post by EvanAnderson » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 5:09 AM UTC

_whiteCaps_ wrote: post #99

deadbabe wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I always wonder why no one invented hoodies or jacket with some kind of built in laptop pocket in the back.

Surveyors vests have those. Probably draw a lot of attention to yourself wearing hi viz though.

I dunno about drawing attention. I've heard enough stories of physical pentesters getting into secure areas using the "wear a hi-viz vest and a hard hat" strategy. The outfit seems a little like Douglas Adams' "Somebody Else's Problem Field". People seem to be blind to the stereotypical "workman" getup.

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#212

Post by culturestate » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 5:40 AM UTC

kmoser wrote: post #203

GuB-42 wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Considering that the author likes the idea of carrying his stuff in a brown paper bag. I don't think a beat up looking laptop would bother him. In fact, if you look at the picture, there are a few scratches and dings on his laptop. Minor scratches won't affect functionality in any way, in fact, I think there is a certain beauty to it. A laptop is a tool, a tool is meant to be used, and usage leaves marks. If it looks…

Not so good if the charger prongs start banging into the laptop's jacks and ports.

I‘m fairly sure that generation of MBP is USB-C only. If a UK plug prong is smashing its way in there, you‘ve got much bigger problems than a shorted port.

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#213

Post by eichin » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 5:41 AM UTC

sgerenser wrote: post #177

1970-01-01 wrote: post #124

Why do almost all laptops not come with a built-in handle? That is the quintessence of a portable item. Forget the bag.

The original “Toilet Seat” iBook from 1999is the only one I can recall that came with a handle: https://lunduke.substack.com/p/ode-to-the-clamshell-ibook-g3...

Also the eMate 300! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EMate_300 (from 1997)

(And if you go much farther back, the TRS-80 Model 4p - but "sewing machine class" portables kind of had to.)

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#214

Post by eichin » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 5:44 AM UTC

0_____0 wrote: post #149

1970-01-01 wrote: post #124

Why do almost all laptops not come with a built-in handle? That is the quintessence of a portable item. Forget the bag.

Weight. Packed size. Most people don't need a handle, so why waste volume and material on it? I think the Toshiba Toughbook had a handle. I think many folks here, given their druthers, would design something that looked like a Toughbook, then become disenchanted with it for various completely foreseeable reasons, and go back to using their standard issue MBP.

*Panasonic Toughbook

(There were generations of these with handles, but at least in the early ones, the handle didn't dominate the dimensions - things like "removable drives encased in impact gel" did.)

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#215

Post by overfeed » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 5:52 AM UTC

micromacrofoot wrote: post #170

sedatk wrote: post #115

- It has a wide base, so the laptop just swings back and forth while carrying. - Gets the rainwater or any other hazardous material in. - Extremely easy to check out what's inside for a thief. - Can slide out easily and fall when toppled. Terrible overall. Could make it to Top 10 Worst Laptop Bags though. Just use a Tom Bihn that uses a separate, rigid, harder to access sleeve inside your backpack for laptops.

the author linked to a comment where they described primary drivers for this as: disdain for the ostentatious as well as backpacks personally I use an old shoulder bag, but we've all got our proclivities

> ...disdain for the ostentatious

I chuckled when I read that because the post's introduction casually mentions attending Cloudflare's board meeting.

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#216

Post by rzzzt » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 5:55 AM UTC

neilv wrote: post #101

albumen wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He wrote 02022. It's the year in a Long Now [0]context, avoiding the Y10K problem that's just around the corner. [0] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clock_of_the_Long_Now

It's only a Y10K problem if people assume that a year that happens to be 4 digits is existing in a system that doesn't permit years of 5 or more digits. But as soon as you put a leading 0, (besides confusing people) you seem to be telling people to definitely use arbitrary fixed lengths for years and analogous purposes. Even though they weren't necessarily doing that before. Sincerely, "neilv "

Assuming it's an octal number: 1042.

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#217

Post by bartvk » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 6:12 AM UTC

hwc wrote: post #86

IanCal wrote: post #18

> For me, the ultimate laptop bag is one that looks nothing like a laptop bag; it should look like nothing special at all. That sounds like almost any regular backpack then. They can also be pretty weather proof, don't need to be carried in one hand, aren't open topped showing what's inside easily, and padded. Any simple and cheap backpack would solve this exact problem but better surely, unless your desire is to be…

> and padded I prefer to use a laptop sleeve, and then it doesn't matter if it is padded or not.

Yeah I don't get why I don't see these more often. I have a case around my MacBook and it's a pretty good protector. My tip: get something cheap from Amazon. I tried the Incase Hardshell and it broke within a year.

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#218

Post by teruakohatu » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 6:26 AM UTC

red369 wrote: post #129

CBLT wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've had my car burgled twice for them to only steal a backpack with nothing in it. I'm pretty sure the assumption is that backpacks have laptops.

I really hate this! Long ago, I had a quarterlight window smashed because someone broke into my 20 year old Toyota Corolla to steal a 4L, but half empty bottle of engine oil and a street directory. Obviously the engine oil wasn't expensive, and no-one used street directories anymore, even back then. This was in nice suburb in New Zealand, so it was a bit of a surprise. The replacement window cost many times the value…

> This was in nice suburb in New Zealand, so it was a bit of a surprise.

A friend had her ancient Toyota’s back window smashed in and they stole an old dirty blanket lying on the back seat that they could have gotten for free from any number of places (clean and in better condition)

In a warm climate New Zealand suburb.

My takeaway at the time was that a subset of thieves will steal anything, with zero rational basis and no regard for consequences.

A paper bag would be just as enticing.

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#219

Post by schiffern » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 6:41 AM UTC

jgrahamc wrote: post #76

Huh. This is back on the front page after a hiatus of many hours. A bunch of people here question why I'd use a paper bag to carry a laptop from one place to another. As I said in the post it is "inconspicuous". That can be interpreted in a couple of ways. One is simply not carrying something obviously containing expensive electronics which might be a target for theft. But having thought about this for a while that's…

Sometimes HN confuses me. I'd use a laptop sleeve with any other bag too, but all the 'smart' comments never think of that before posting?

It's like all power has been diverted to the Criticism Drive, with none left for the Self-Reflection Array... but only for oddball ideas of course. Conventional ideas and reasoning only.

For (supposedly) a hacker community I expect we can do better, and thanks OP for sharing! I'll be grabbing one of these bags even just to experiment.

Re: Is a movie prop the ultimate laptop bag?

#220

Post by weinzierl » Tue, Sep 23, 2025, 6:59 AM UTC

"For me, the ultimate laptop bag is one that looks nothing like a laptop bag; it should look like nothing special at all."

Not sure what the point is for a laptop but I've been doing this with my cameras for decades. It's the ideal way to carry a camera because it combines quick access with inconspicuousness and theft protection.