For a while my wife and I have shared my current laptop (Dell Inspiron
6000D), and it's worked out ok. However, lately she's kind of caught the bug
and finally started getting a feel for all the wonderful things she can do
on a computer from getting some of her office tasks done at home to
processing and publishing all those digital photos and videos we've taken
over the years. As such, she's begun monopolizing the laptop a bit, to the
point where it's basically her PC now. I still have my desktop, which is a
very strong machine, but I still frequently need the mobility of a laptop.

That said, I was wondering what some of you folks are using and what
recommendations you may have for a .Net developer on the go. Following are
some of the requirements/preferences I would have:

- Must run Visual Studio 2008 and run it well (or as well as can be expected
:P )
- Must excel at running Microsoft virtual PC environments
- While a 15" screen wouldn't be completely out of the question, I need
something I can carry along to developer events, conferences, training, etc.
without getting a hernia. I've considered going as small as 13.3" for sheer
portability, but I'm thinking 14.1" might be the best balance between
portability and comfortable viewing/suitable development IDE real estate. A
sleek 15" model would be an option, provided it's lightweight with a
smallish footprint for a model with that size display.
- Must have built-in wireless (wireless-n would be a plus)
- Must have an express card slot (for broadband internet access card, eSATA
card, etc.)
- Long battery life would certainly be a bonus, but I will likely often be
tethered to an external HDD, so that's not quite as important to me as it
might be for some.
- *Must* be affordable. Price is a definite issue on this one.
- Light to moderate gaming would be a nice bonus, but I don't have any
expectations in that area. This would most certainly be my lowest priority.

I primarily do VB.Net, C#, ASP.Net and SQL Server development. I also
frequently need to work with a Windows Server 2008, SharePoint and
Performance Point servers environment running on a VPC.

Would anyone care to offer up any tips or insight you might have? Maybe even
brag about that laptop that serves *you* so well in your application
development efforts? As it stands, I'm looking at some of the offerings from
Dell (XPS 1330 13.3" and the 14.1" display version) and HP.

Thanks!

In news:qfydncssB-aiQJ3VnZ2dnUVZ_saknZ2d@comcast.com,
Richard Carpenter typed on Sat, 12 Apr 2008 12:03:42 -0400:
Well I don't have other users on my computers. But this is what I do.
I'll buy a new laptop and say after 6 months or so, I decide if I really
like it. And if I do (and I haven't been disappointed yet), I will buy a
second one just like it. Even if it is a used one on eBay. That way I
can swap parts if I need to troubleshoot it, etc. And it is so nice to
quickly swap hard drives too. You can't do this with different models.

--
Bill

IMHO the most important requirement for software development is plenty
of RAM, get a couple gigs. Especially since it'll probably have Vista
on it. I would sooner put my money on that than a faster hard drive or
a few extra MHz.

Screen size is a real tradeoff. IMHO 14 in 4:3 screens were perfect,
but now everything is widescreen, aka shortscreen. The only thing wrong
with my 14" D630 is low screen resolution, 1280x800 is really suboptimal
for development, particularly the height.

Finally, heat/battery life. I got a T60p with a gorgeous 15" 1600x1200
screen which I don't use because it's simply too hot to use in my lap,
mostly due to the graphics processor I think. (I had read the T60 has
pretty good battery life, but the T60p has a beefier graphics which
turned out to be a bad thing). And it's a bit too bulky. I wouldn't go
for another 15" unless it's very thin. Maybe a high-res 14"?

I've also owned a 13" but don't see the point. A 14" is about the size
of a piece of paper with is about right, and has a full-size keyboard.

Greetings "timeOday" & others..

Two things..

Regarding heat, the new(er) Intel mobile processors are showing
up more and more these days. These are the processors based on
the 45nm fab process. One advantage is they run a LOT (notice two
words. No such word as "alot" folks! If in doubt, look it up)
cooler. I was at the local computer store recently and compared
(hand under laptop) the heat from units that had been on all day
long. One used a processor based on the existing 60nm fab process
vs. the other at 45nm, what a difference in overall heat! And
yes, it is understood that that includes the hard disk also.

Meanwhile, for all those that like expensive battery heaters,
consider the following.

http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=75004

Several other manufacturers are now making the same type of
cooler. The potential increase in long term longevity of your
electronics is undeniable.

Cheers,
Mr. Mentor


"timeOday" <timeOday-UNSPAM@theknack.net> wrote in message
news:19qdnTKMuZiD7o_VnZ2dnUVZ_judnZ2d@comcast.com. ..
| IMHO the most important requirement for software development is
plenty
| of RAM, get a couple gigs. Especially since it'll probably
have Vista
| on it. I would sooner put my money on that than a faster hard
drive or
| a few extra MHz.
|
| Screen size is a real tradeoff. IMHO 14 in 4:3 screens were
perfect,
| but now everything is widescreen, aka shortscreen. The only
thing wrong
| with my 14" D630 is low screen resolution, 1280x800 is really
suboptimal
| for development, particularly the height.
|
| Finally, heat/battery life. I got a T60p with a gorgeous 15"
1600x1200
| screen which I don't use because it's simply too hot to use in
my lap,
| mostly due to the graphics processor I think. (I had read the
T60 has
| pretty good battery life, but the T60p has a beefier graphics
which
| turned out to be a bad thing). And it's a bit too bulky. I
wouldn't go
| for another 15" unless it's very thin. Maybe a high-res 14"?
|
| I've also owned a 13" but don't see the point. A 14" is about
the size
| of a piece of paper with is about right, and has a full-size
keyboard.

In news:VQBQj.46$oJ4.3020235@petpeeve.ziplink.net,
dBc typed on Sat, 26 Apr 2008 08:37:09 GMT:
Actually there is such a word. It is the misspelling of the word
"allot". Look it up.

That doesn't make a lot of sense to me. To cool your laptop, you want to
suck up more amps from your laptop battery and/or power supply and to
create more heat in the process? Plus you want to lug that thing around
with you? Why not prop up your laptop to increase airflow? That is what
I do. And my Celeron 1.5GHZ runs at 130°F vs. 150°F when not propped up.
My hard drive also runs cooler. From 120°F down to 108°F.

--
Bill

Greetings Bill..

It is very low power consumption as it runs off your USB port.
The theory being cooler electronics results [typically] in more
reliable electronics - in the long run. It wouldn't be difficult
to wire this for an external AC wall adapter, if desired. It may
already be set up for that. If you don't want to carry it with
you, you can leave it at home or work. Gigahertz is abbreviated
as GHz.

Cheers,
Mr. Mentor


"BillW50" <BillW50@aol.kom> wrote in message
news:4813d968$0$6435$834e42db@reader.greatnowhere. com...
| In news:VQBQj.46$oJ4.3020235@petpeeve.ziplink.net,
| dBc typed on Sat, 26 Apr 2008 08:37:09 GMT:
| > Greetings "timeOday" & others..
| >
| > Two things..
| >
| > Regarding heat, the new(er) Intel mobile processors are
showing
| > up more and more these days. These are the processors based
on
| > the 45nm fab process. One advantage is they run a LOT
|
| > (notice two
| > words. No such word as "alot" folks! If in doubt, look it up)
|
| Actually there is such a word. It is the misspelling of the
word
| "allot". Look it up.
|
| > cooler. I was at the local computer store recently and
compared
| > (hand under laptop) the heat from units that had been on all
day
| > long. One used a processor based on the existing 60nm fab
process
| > vs. the other at 45nm, what a difference in overall heat! And
| > yes, it is understood that that includes the hard disk also.
| >
| > Meanwhile, for all those that like expensive battery heaters,
| > consider the following.
| >
| > http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=75004
| >
| > Several other manufacturers are now making the same type of
| > cooler. The potential increase in long term longevity of your
| > electronics is undeniable.
|
| That doesn't make a lot of sense to me. To cool your laptop,
you want to
| suck up more amps from your laptop battery and/or power supply
and to
| create more heat in the process? Plus you want to lug that
thing around
| with you? Why not prop up your laptop to increase airflow? That
is what
| I do. And my Celeron 1.5GHZ runs at 130°F vs. 150°F when not
propped up.
| My hard drive also runs cooler. From 120°F down to 108°F.
|
| --
| Bill
|