We Need a Better PC • Hacker News Board

Re: We Need a Better PC

#581

Post by nfoz » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:00 PM UTC

superobserver wrote: post #80

Why not by a Chromebook Pixel (2015)? Seriously.

I regret mine. Keyboard is missing so many keys, speakers are garbage, getting Debian to support the hardware was nontrivial and stuff continues to break. So few ports. And if it's plugged in when the battery gets to full charge, it will often emit a high-pitched whine until I unplug it, meaning I can't leave it sitting plugged-in with full battery (perhaps a defective unit? but who knows if that's due to running Linux instead of ChromeOS?).

I'm shopping around for a new laptop to replace it, that will be more linux-hacker friendly (more keyboard keys, touchpad with real buttons, etc.)

Re: We Need a Better PC

#582

Post by reirob » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:02 PM UTC

polymeris wrote: post #561

reirob wrote: post #501

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Got the T450s with an i7-5600U, 20GB RAM, 1TB SSD (bought from another vendor and swapped, much cheaper than the 500GB SSD from Lenovo). Ubuntu 14.04 works like charm. With an additional battery (the thick one), I can spend a whole day without electricity and the battery can be swapped without switching off the laptop. It's so far the best ThinkPad that I had until now. I have the impression that at least with this o…

Just curious, why do you consider the T440s unusable? I have had mine for years and, while it's not perfect, I don't have any big complaints about it.

The biggest problem was that it didn't have physical buttons above the trackpoint - they very virtual. For trackpoint only users it's unusable, because we often have the thumb on the button for dragging, double clicking etc. Often we have even both thumbs on the buttons. And the virtual buttons didn't work on Linux.

The keyboard was utterly broken (I guess it was the keyboard electronics or firmware), because combination of some three keys didn't work - I remember that RightCtrl + AltGr + H, didn't work, I use this kind of combinations with Virtualbox.

Additionally I have chosen a screen that was reflecting so working more than half an hour made the head hurt. And on their web-site there was no indication which screen had anti-glare.

I guess there were more things that I disliked, but I don't remember any more. Sent it back and bought a used T430s that served me very well.

Re: We Need a Better PC

#583

Post by scholia » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:04 PM UTC

Mister_Snuggles wrote: post #474

lmm wrote: post #471

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Macbook isn't very usable in that space though, since they have no first-party docking station support.

I use a MacBook Pro like this every work day. Plugging in four cables (power, 2x DisplayPort, USB) is not really that big of a deal.

You could simply add a Thunderbolt or USB 3 dock....

Using an external keyboard and mouse solves the ergonomic problems of using a laptop for long periods. (Sad to say, I see very few people actually doing this.)

Of course, you don't get the benefits of running a faster, hotter processor, expandability etc, though Apple no longer offers a reasonably priced tower system anyway....

Re: We Need a Better PC

#584

Post by bshanks » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:09 PM UTC

eosrei wrote: post #301

chjohasbrouck wrote: post #285

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have both, and I find the things that Macs have that everything else is missing just aren't articulated on a spec sheet. The display on the Macbook Pro Retina is just flawless. The colors, the anti-glare, and the picture quality from all angles, it's just really well done. The brushed aluminum chassis makes it very cool and lightweight, great to travel with and keep on your lap. Excellent battery life. It's just a…

You seem to have only looked at the older PCs. Have you looked at the Dell XPS 13 or Microsoft Surface Book? They may dispel your complaints. You can even buy the XPS with Ubuntu.

I'd like to buy Microsoft Surface Book or Microsoft Surface Pro 4 but after a glance at https://www.reddit.com/r/SurfaceLinux/ it seems like people who dual boot may be having trouble with Ubuntu failing to boot after system updates (either Windows or Linux updates, anything which re-runs GRUB or whatever the Windows equivalent of that is; there are work-arounds eg https://www.reddit.com/r/SurfaceLinux/comments/43an26/repair... but i'm scared of them because i don't understand them well enough to know if future system updates will break it again), and with getting either of the touchscreen or the cameras to work at all. I may be wrong, though, I didn't read too closely.

Re: We Need a Better PC

#585

Post by chias » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:11 PM UTC

habosa wrote: post #113

Not disagreeing with the premise, but just want to plug a machine I am very happy with. I was a lifetime mac owner (since OS 9) and my 2010 Macbook Pro finally broke down this year. It made it that long because I doubled the RAM, replaced the battery, and replaced the HDD with a hybrid drive. Finally the battery puffed up and exploded. I brought it to the Apple Store and they were beyond useless. The new MBPs are not…

That laptop looks amazing! Quick question: does it have a backlit keyboard?

Re: We Need a Better PC

#586

Post by imtringued » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:11 PM UTC

Aoyagi wrote: post #441

glossyscr wrote: post #322

Not disagreeing but there is one notebook and this is how the Macbook should have been: - Same build quality as Apple - Thin and light as the Macbook - Pixel density higher than Retina - Powerful CPU - Just released http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-systems/razer-blade-stealth

Razer and built quality or reliability don't go well together.

We'll find out soon enough if that's the case.

Re: We Need a Better PC

#587

Post by pixelcloud » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:15 PM UTC

SomeCallMeTim wrote: post #140

habosa wrote: post #113

Not disagreeing with the premise, but just want to plug a machine I am very happy with. I was a lifetime mac owner (since OS 9) and my 2010 Macbook Pro finally broke down this year. It made it that long because I doubled the RAM, replaced the battery, and replaced the HDD with a hybrid drive. Finally the battery puffed up and exploded. I brought it to the Apple Store and they were beyond useless. The new MBPs are not…

I'm really happy with my Toshiba Tecra Z series. The article totally missed Toshiba, which is still a decent manufacturer. I get 5-6 hours of battery life with real usage, close to 10 hours in "green" mode, I've got a 15.6" screen, a keypad, 16Gb of RAM, an i7 processor, and a 1Tb SSD. And it's just over 4 pounds and pretty thin. I have NVIDIA graphics. The Tecra Z has an available 3K touch display, and its HDMI port…

I laughed when he was talking about the System76 laptop and being "modular" as a bonus. Then complaining about the empty space for the HDD.

Also, didn't compare the Surface Book (only talked about why he didn't use the Surface Pro..). I find that particularly funny

Re: We Need a Better PC

#588

Post by IkmoIkmo » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:23 PM UTC

The Surface Book and the Dell XPS 13 were not mentioned, while they're easily both in the top 3.

Re: We Need a Better PC

#589

Post by oblio » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:25 PM UTC

coldtea wrote: post #460

izacus wrote: post #352

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or you know... sitting outside in 30C summer in shorts. That 80C chasis temperature then somehow isn't as fun anymore. Current rMBP is unusable outside in summer due to hot chasis... my previous Dell XPS didn't have this issue.

> Or you know... sitting outside in 30C summer in shorts. Well, anyone that wears shorts and sandals and is over 20, deserves it. > Current rMBP is unusable outside in summer due to hot chasis... Maybe sit on a table? I use mine in a country that frequently gets 38-40 oC, and in a country that is constantly Lousiana-summer level heat and humidity (Singapore) and never had much of a problem. Or one could use any kind…

> Well, anyone that wears shorts and sandals and is over 20, deserves it.

He only said "shorts". You know, adults can wear shorts as well.

Re: We Need a Better PC

#590

Post by rhodysurf » Wed, Feb 17, 2016, 5:39 PM UTC

Kurtz79 wrote: post #497

neverminder wrote: post #368

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can and many people (including myself) have successfully done that already - https://github.com/raphael/linux-samus

I think the question of the parent was if you could install Linux as you can with a normal PC (just by plugging an installation CD or USB drive), and the answer would be: "no you can't, unless you go through some hoops". It's like installing Mac OSX on a PC, or Linux on a Mac: you can, but not easily and not in a way that is supported by the manufacturer. You just have to scroll down in the link to see that there are…

To install Linux on a Mac you literally follow the same instructions as you would for a windows (EFI) machine.