| From: William Park via talk <talk@gtalug.org> | On Fri, Dec 09, 2016 at 12:42:13PM -0500, D. Hugh Redelmeier via talk wrote:> | I'm eyeing HP x2 Detachable 10-p092ms Signature Edition 2 in 1 PC CAD > | $279.00 because it has MS-Office mobile version included.-- > > My thoughts on this netbook (based on personal tastes):> > - if you want a normal Linux distro, a tablet is rarely the right> choice (Linux's fault) | I'm looking to replace my broken Windows laptop, which I use to connect | and manage external devices, like cell phones, GPS, dash cam, etc. I | can do that via Windows VirtualBox, but difficult to carry 50lb toweraround. Perhaps this cheaper box would do the job: <http://forums.redflagdeals.com/newegg-refurbished-hp-probook-6450b-laptop-14-display-intel-core-i3-2-4ghz-4gb-ram-160gb-hdd-135-2063294/> OOPS: it just went out of stock and the price jumped. | > - detachable keyboards are usually a compromise. In particular, the | > balance is usually wrong. Since the payoff is so slight on Linux, I | > don't think that detachable is a great choice. | Actually, the detachable keyboard is very useful as "case" and "stand", | and all for free too! Sorry, what I meant was that a detachable keyboard isn't really better than a permanently installed one. The advantages (for a Windows or Linux user) are minor and the disadvantages are more significant. In a computer with a detachable keyboard, the guts must be behind the display. That means that the weight distribution is awkward. | It's amazing that Microsoft is selling Raspberry Pi, tablets, and | laptops at such cheap prices. Yes, once or twice in a while. I have found a few to be so remarkable that I post them here. If you care about Windows, you should be aware that many of the PC's are sold without non-Microsoft bloatware. They are called "Signature Edition".