[karajorma]

Guys. Let's not disuade DeepBlue from using a laptop. It will sterilise him and the fanboi genes will die with him

[Ulala]

All I know is that my laptop can play CS:Source, Far Cry, Battlefield 2, FSOpen, and does a good job of it too. My DS on the other hand can't. However, as far as price goes... don't ask.

[CP5670]

My brother has a PSP. Wipeout is pretty fun, even though it's rather choppy. I wouldn't have ever gotten a PSP myself though. I don't see the point of spending a lot of money on a laptop for games either. A cheap, reliable one that does school/work related tasks is good enough for me. If I have time to play games then that means I'm at home, and gaming on my desktop machine beats the pants off any portable unit I could get.

[Mefustae]

Originally posted by Ulala
All I know is that my laptop can play CS:Source, Far Cry, Battlefield 2, FSOpen, and does a good job of it too

You bastard, my main computer can't even play that...*sigh* I want, nay, need to upgrade so damn much...!:hopping:

[CP5670]

That particular game is apparently just poorly programmed. I don't have it, but a lot of people are reporting that you really need 2GB of memory or it stutters a lot.

[Descenterace]

Tablet PCs are the way to go for general use (NOT games). Be they palm-sized or laptop-sized, they rock.

A pen is just SO MUCH BETTER than a mouse (unless you're gaming).

OK, so if the tablet doesn't have a keyboard it can be a bugger to type up a document, but the device I have my eye on comes with a nice compact keyboard and stand attached to the back. Sets up like a laptop in seconds, if necessary.
I've been using this particular tablet for a couple of weeks now. The company uses it for testing applications, but it's kinda old and they're selling it soon. So I'm going to buy it.

It's not very fast (only about 1GHz, I think) but it does have a gig of memory... I might remove half of that and sell it on.

Now... does Debian have native support for tablet pens? I assume so, since the device looks like a mouse to the OS, but Windows XP Pro doesn't detect it for some reason.


For gaming, desktop machines are and always will be superior to laptops. They're much cheaper for the same power, and there's usually a delay of between six and twelve months between new tech arriving for the desktop and the same tech becoming available for lappies. Besides, replacing your laptop's graphics card is an awkward task.

[aldo_14]

Originally posted by CP5670
That particular game is apparently just poorly programmed. I don't have it, but a lot of people are reporting that you really need 2GB of memory or it stutters a lot.

?

It actually plays really well for me, considering my gfx card isn't suppossed to work.  Granted, it's at lowest for 90% of settings, but it still looks good enough.

I don't really play handhelds - never did, although I still have a gameboy colour with Cannon Fodder (bliss!) knocking about.  I might be tempted to pick up a PSP - once the prices comes down - if the rumours of Sony releasing an SDK are true.

[EtherShock]

Originally posted by karajorma
Guys. Let's not disuade DeepBlue from using a laptop. It will sterilise him and the fanboi genes will die with him

*Removes laptop from lap*

[Descenterace]

</ambiguity>
IIRC, the heat generated by a laptop is supposedly enough to sterilise.
<ambiguity>

[Ulala]

Originally posted by Descenterace
For gaming, desktop machines are and always will be superior to laptops. They're much cheaper for the same power, and there's usually a delay of between six and twelve months between new tech arriving for the desktop and the same tech becoming available for lappies. Besides, replacing your laptop's graphics card is an awkward task.

Sure, but if I can only have one or the other, and I'm going to college next year, I'll take a laptop which can do all my school stuff (especially since the new engineering building at Oregon State is completely wireless, a lot of curriculum is online, and laptops are required as of last year), plus play the latest games.. basically it's what works for your situation/lifestyle, and my lappy works nicely for me.

[WMCoolmon]

Originally posted by Descenterace
Tablet PCs are the way to go for general use (NOT games). Be they palm-sized or laptop-sized, they rock.

A pen is just SO MUCH BETTER than a mouse (unless you're gaming).

OK, so if the tablet doesn't have a keyboard it can be a bugger to type up a document, but the device I have my eye on comes with a nice compact keyboard and stand attached to the back. Sets up like a laptop in seconds, if necessary.
I've been using this particular tablet for a couple of weeks now. The company uses it for testing applications, but it's kinda old and they're selling it soon. So I'm going to buy it.

What tablet is it? (And do you know how long the battery tends to last "in the field"?)

[Descenterace]

Seems to last between 3 and 6 hours. I can't remember the exact model, but it is quite an old one.

I think it's the Motion Computing M1400. Apparently they'll not be producing any more batteries for it after 2007, so I'll have to buy a few spares.

I won't be getting the docking station, just the keyboard. The tablet support isn't very stable so I'll have to be careful not to let it tip over backwards when set up.

Anyone know if Linux works with this particular model?

[CP5670]

Originally posted by Ulala
Sure, but if I can only have one or the other, and I'm going to college next year, I'll take a laptop which can do all my school stuff (especially since the new engineering building at Oregon State is completely wireless, a lot of curriculum is online, and laptops are required as of last year), plus play the latest games.. basically it's what works for your situation/lifestyle, and my lappy works nicely for me.

Are they actually mandatory? My laptop usually just sits in my room; I hardly ever take it to the university. I don't have time to use it there anyway, as I am pretty much always sitting (or sleeping) in classes while I am there. Most of the coursework is online but you don't need to access that during classes.

[EtherShock]

It depends on your field of study, some require them and some don't. Mostly, it's just a convenience. It's better than dragging your desktop, saves time and valuable cargo space. ^_^

Originally posted by Descenterace
</ambiguity>
IIRC, the heat generated by a laptop is supposedly enough to sterilise.
<ambiguity>

I did some research on this. There isn't much information out there, but just the way the thighs are positioned to maintain balance is enough to cause a threat, the heat is just overkill. They don't know exactly how much exposure is required though. There needs to be more studies done. I'm not taking any chances however until more information is available.

[Ulala]

Originally posted by CP5670

Are they actually mandatory? My laptop usually just sits in my room; I hardly ever take it to the university. I don't have time to use it there anyway, as I am pretty much always sitting (or sleeping) in classes while I am there. Most of the coursework is online but you don't need to access that during classes.

Rgr, they started requiring laptops for engineering students last year. They try to soften the blow by giving "student discounts" on certain laptops from certain companies (Dell, HP, etc), but usually those certain laptops pretty much suck.

Certain types of engineering at OSU even require high end machines, they go so far as to specifiy what minimum specs they want: 2gigs of RAM, 2ghz processor, and a 256mb graphics card. Not sure what you'd need all that for (besides Battlefield 2, css, etc).. but meh, I'm no chemical engineer.

And as for if we'll actually use them in class enough that it was worth the trouble... well I'll let you know in a few weeks when classes start.

[aldo_14]

I'm betting Dell / HP / whoever is getting a massive kickback in return for providing academic machines (in the labs or whatnot).  Where I went to uni, they actually loaned laptops (free) to business students - but not Computer Science ones.......  of course, the only real use for laptops at uni was to play Champ Man during lectures, so that might not be a bad thing.

[CP5670]

It depends on your field of study, some require them and some don't. Mostly, it's just a convenience. It's better than dragging your desktop, saves time and valuable cargo space. ^_^

I'm in math and the assignments are generally posted online but you don't need a computer to actually do them. The numerical analysis class I did last semester was a bit of an exception, basically all programming assignments, but in class it was just a matter of listening to the professor drone on about stuff.

I'm doing a CS class this semester (it's Java, which is totally useless to me, but the retarded department dropped all their C classes last year and I need a CS credit for my major), but it doesn't require you to have a computer during class.

Rgr, they started requiring laptops for engineering students last year. They try to soften the blow by giving "student discounts" on certain laptops from certain companies (Dell, HP, etc), but usually those certain laptops pretty much suck.

Certain types of engineering at OSU even require high end machines, they go so far as to specifiy what minimum specs they want: 2gigs of RAM, 2ghz processor, and a 256mb graphics card. Not sure what you'd need all that for (besides Battlefield 2, css, etc).. but meh, I'm no chemical engineer.

And as for if we'll actually use them in class enough that it was worth the trouble... well I'll let you know in a few weeks when classes start.

That's interesting. I'm guessing all that is for 3D rendering software, although I'm not sure why the video card memory would matter so much. (would be funny if someone gets a 512MB 6200 for it )

I'm betting Dell / HP / whoever is getting a massive kickback in return for providing academic machines (in the labs or whatnot). Where I went to uni, they actually loaned laptops (free) to business students - but not Computer Science ones....... of course, the only real use for laptops at uni was to play Champ Man during lectures, so that might not be a bad thing.

That's the one really good thing about laptops; you have something to do if the lecture gets boring (which it always does), although two of my classes last semester only had ten or so students so people would probably notice. It's a practical option in the 400 student introductory economics classes though.

[Ulala]

Originally posted by CP5670

That's interesting. I'm guessing all that is for 3D rendering software, although I'm not sure why the video card memory would matter so much. (would be funny if someone gets a 512MB 6200 for it )

512 would be crazy! Rendering would make sense. Maybe I'll ask around after classes start. *shrugs*

[CP5670]

That card is basically a joke actually. But since the requirements are only on the video card memory, it might fool some people into buying it.

[Ulala]

Yeah, the school doesn't mention what core it wants or anything.. kinda weird since they were so specific up until that point.