On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:
On 01/05/2015 22:18, The Medway Handyman wrote:
On 01/05/2015 21:45, Dennis@home wrote:
On 01/05/2015 20:15, stuart noble wrote:

It does everything the vast majority of users need. Why they buy
Windows
machines or Macs is beyond me.


Maybe because windows laptops are cheaper and don't need an internet
connection.

??????

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much
lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low & you
have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility, if they go libre office they might as well install linux
from the get go.


--
Everything you read in newspapers is absolutely true, except for the
rare story of which you happen to have first-hand knowledge. €“ Erwin Knoll

On 02/05/15 00:01, Simon Brown wrote:

You will see the point when they do any of the following..

stop releasing security fixes

Doesnt happen with Apple.

For sure does. When was the last security update to a power PC machine?


--
Everything you read in newspapers is absolutely true, except for the
rare story of which you happen to have first-hand knowledge. €“ Erwin Knoll

"The Medway Handyman" wrote in message
...
On 01/05/2015 21:45, Dennis@home wrote:
On 01/05/2015 20:15, stuart noble wrote:

It does everything the vast majority of users need. Why they buy Windows
machines or Macs is beyond me.


Maybe because windows laptops are cheaper and don't need an internet
connection.

??????

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much lower
price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low & you have to
pay extra for word, excel etc.

How do you feel about google snooping on everything you do ?

On Sat, 02 May 2015 12:06:25 +0100
The Natural Philosopher wrote:

On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:
On 01/05/2015 22:18, The Medway Handyman wrote:
On 01/05/2015 21:45, Dennis@home wrote:
On 01/05/2015 20:15, stuart noble wrote:

It does everything the vast majority of users need. Why they buy
Windows
machines or Macs is beyond me.


Maybe because windows laptops are cheaper and don't need an
internet connection.

??????

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much
lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low
& you have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get
Word compatibility, if they go libre office they might as well
install linux from the get go.



In a nutshell! Although when I moved to Libre Office from Excel, I
found it to be more clunky. But it does all I need.

--
Davey.

On 02/05/15 12:15, Davey wrote:
On Sat, 02 May 2015 12:06:25 +0100
The Natural Philosopher wrote:

On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:
On 01/05/2015 22:18, The Medway Handyman wrote:
On 01/05/2015 21:45, Dennis@home wrote:
On 01/05/2015 20:15, stuart noble wrote:

It does everything the vast majority of users need. Why they buy
Windows
machines or Macs is beyond me.


Maybe because windows laptops are cheaper and don't need an
internet connection.

??????

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much
lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low
& you have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get
Word compatibility, if they go libre office they might as well
install linux from the get go.



In a nutshell! Although when I moved to Libre Office from Excel, I
found it to be more clunky. But it does all I need.


Agreed. I am no fan of MS office OR libre office.

The word processor is too feature full for most purposes and absurdly
quirky, and I now tend to use it just to generate plain text, and if I
want a well laid out doc use Scribus.


The spreadsheets are also quirky at the UI level and unpleasant. I use
them as little as possible. Frank;y if UI have a complex job to do I
generally reach for a C compiler...



--
Everything you read in newspapers is absolutely true, except for the
rare story of which you happen to have first-hand knowledge. €“ Erwin Knoll

On 02/05/2015 12:01, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 01/05/15 21:49, charles wrote:
In article om,
Dennis@home wrote:
On 01/05/2015 20:15, stuart noble wrote:

It does everything the vast majority of users need. Why they buy
Windows
machines or Macs is beyond me.


Maybe because windows laptops are cheaper and don't need an internet
connection.

They do if they need to connect to the outside world.

..and windows laptops arent cheaper..



You can buy a perfectly usable win8.1 laptop for about £170.
Or a win8.1 tablet for about £90.
How much is a cromebook?

In article , Tim Watts
scribeth thus
On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much
lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low & you
have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

+1 I have not used Word, Excel or PP for at least 5 years - just
libreoffice - and that includes dealing and resending work's MS office
documents.


Gave up with Open orifice and Libre office, use this now and its free
'tho there is a paid for version that does a bit more...


http://www.kingsoftstore.com/
--
Tony Sayer

On 02/05/15 10:16, Bod wrote:
On 02/05/2015 09:46, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 09:32, Bod wrote:
On 02/05/2015 09:24, Tim Watts wrote:
On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much
lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low &
you
have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

+1 I have not used Word, Excel or PP for at least 5 years - just
libreoffice - and that includes dealing and resending work's MS office
documents.

If your internet goes down while using a Chromebook, the Chromebook
becomes an illuminated ornament.

That's not totally true - it does handle some offline work.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/24539...o-offline.html


Some? Like what?

Have you read the link?

On 02/05/15 12:06, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:
On 01/05/2015 22:18, The Medway Handyman wrote:
On 01/05/2015 21:45, Dennis@home wrote:
On 01/05/2015 20:15, stuart noble wrote:

It does everything the vast majority of users need. Why they buy
Windows
machines or Macs is beyond me.


Maybe because windows laptops are cheaper and don't need an internet
connection.

??????

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much
lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low & you
have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility, if they go libre office they might as well install linux
from the get go.



No they buy Windows because that's what it came with... And they don't
know about any other options, except Apple.

In article ,
The Medway Handyman wrote:
Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much
lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low & you
have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

Open Office etc is free and is compatible with Word, etc.

--
*Okay, who stopped the payment on my reality check? *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility,

More bollox.

I'd say the majority of OEM versions of Windows included with laptops
don't include Word.

--
*Vegetarians taste great*

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 02/05/2015 13:21, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 10:16, Bod wrote:
On 02/05/2015 09:46, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 09:32, Bod wrote:
On 02/05/2015 09:24, Tim Watts wrote:
On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the much
lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec is low &
you
have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

+1 I have not used Word, Excel or PP for at least 5 years - just
libreoffice - and that includes dealing and resending work's MS office
documents.

If your internet goes down while using a Chromebook, the Chromebook
becomes an illuminated ornament.

That's not totally true - it does handle some offline work.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/24539...o-offline.html



Some? Like what?

Have you read the link?

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.
Also, to upload stuff on my 0.7Mbs upload connection to the cloud would
take ages. Inconvenient.
My 8" tablet is far more versatile and useful than any Chromebook and
only cost me £129.
You can buy a half decent *proper* laptop for about £200 or less, so why
would anyone want to restrict themselves by buying a Chromebook?

On 02/05/2015 13:38, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility,

More bollox.

I'd say the majority of OEM versions of Windows included with laptops
don't include Word.

Wordpad and Notepad are included with every Windows system.
Wordpad is quite a powerful word processor for most uses, IMO.
Most of the Windows Office Word program is for complex processing and
I'd hazard a guess that most people don't use most of the bells and
whistles on it anyway.

On 02/05/15 13:14, Dennis@home wrote:
On 02/05/2015 12:01, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 01/05/15 21:49, charles wrote:
In article om,
Dennis@home wrote:
On 01/05/2015 20:15, stuart noble wrote:

It does everything the vast majority of users need. Why they buy
Windows
machines or Macs is beyond me.


Maybe because windows laptops are cheaper and don't need an internet
connection.

They do if they need to connect to the outside world.

..and windows laptops arent cheaper..



You can buy a perfectly usable win8.1 laptop for about £170.
Or a win8.1 tablet for about £90.
How much is a cromebook?

You misspelt that. Its 'CrimeBook' :-)


--
Everything you read in newspapers is absolutely true, except for the
rare story of which you happen to have first-hand knowledge. €“ Erwin Knoll

On 02/05/15 13:38, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility,

More bollox.

I'd say the majority of OEM versions of Windows included with laptops
don't include Word.

??? so waht? You get MSoffice as a package deal at low money and that's
what people stick on for 'compatibility'



--
Everything you read in newspapers is absolutely true, except for the
rare story of which you happen to have first-hand knowledge. €“ Erwin Knoll

On 02/05/15 13:55, Bod wrote:
On 02/05/2015 13:38, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility,

More bollox.

I'd say the majority of OEM versions of Windows included with laptops
don't include Word.

Wordpad and Notepad are included with every Windows system.
Wordpad is quite a powerful word processor for most uses, IMO.
Most of the Windows Office Word program is for complex processing and
I'd hazard a guess that most people don't use most of the bells and
whistles on it anyway.

Actually if they did, they would realise that a proper DTP was what they
needed, not Word.


--
Everything you read in newspapers is absolutely true, except for the
rare story of which you happen to have first-hand knowledge. €“ Erwin Knoll

In article ,
Bod wrote:
I'd say the majority of OEM versions of Windows included with laptops
don't include Word.

Wordpad and Notepad are included with every Windows system.

But not Word.

Wordpad is quite a powerful word processor for most uses, IMO.

It's perfectly horrible.

Most of the Windows Office Word program is for complex processing and
I'd hazard a guess that most people don't use most of the bells and
whistles on it anyway.

Very true. But doesn't stop many offices etc using it for the most basic
of tasks. And assuming everyone they send it to can read it. Even when not
all versions of Word can read every Word file.

--
*All generalizations are false.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 02/05/15 13:38, Bod wrote:

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.

That's not really the Chromebook's fault though - apples and oranges.
This could happen with any laptop and you left your stuff a) on a work
server; b) on your home server; c) in the cloud.

But I would prefer a device that has the option for lots of local
storage and 100% sync of certain file trees.

Also, to upload stuff on my 0.7Mbs upload connection to the cloud would
take ages. Inconvenient.
My 8" tablet is far more versatile and useful than any Chromebook and
only cost me £129.
You can buy a half decent *proper* laptop for about £200 or less, so why
would anyone want to restrict themselves by buying a Chromebook?

Convenience probably.

I'm looking at one for the kids schoolwork as it's cheaper (less loss if
it gets damaged) and less hassle for me to manage.

But I will be adding the SFTP client so they can access all the music
and photos on our home server.

On 02/05/2015 14:11, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 13:38, Bod wrote:

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.

That's not really the Chromebook's fault though - apples and oranges.
This could happen with any laptop and you left your stuff a) on a work
server; b) on your home server; c) in the cloud.

But I would prefer a device that has the option for lots of local
storage and 100% sync of certain file trees.

Also, to upload stuff on my 0.7Mbs upload connection to the cloud would
take ages. Inconvenient.
My 8" tablet is far more versatile and useful than any Chromebook and
only cost me £129.
You can buy a half decent *proper* laptop for about £200 or less, so why
would anyone want to restrict themselves by buying a Chromebook?

Convenience probably.

I'm looking at one for the kids schoolwork as it's cheaper (less loss if
it gets damaged) and less hassle for me to manage.

Why not desktop? More rugged, and modular.

Coffee on keyboard ...................

But I will be adding the SFTP client so they can access all the music
and photos on our home server.

And their schoolwork?

On 02/05/2015 14:11, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 13:38, Bod wrote:

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.

That's not really the Chromebook's fault though - apples and oranges.
This could happen with any laptop and you left your stuff a) on a work
server; b) on your home server; c) in the cloud.

But I would prefer a device that has the option for lots of local
storage and 100% sync of certain file trees.

Also, to upload stuff on my 0.7Mbs upload connection to the cloud would
take ages. Inconvenient.
My 8" tablet is far more versatile and useful than any Chromebook and
only cost me £129.
You can buy a half decent *proper* laptop for about £200 or less, so why
would anyone want to restrict themselves by buying a Chromebook?

Convenience probably.

I'm looking at one for the kids schoolwork as it's cheaper (less loss if
it gets damaged) and less hassle for me to manage.

But I will be adding the SFTP client so they can access all the music
and photos on our home server.

Ok.

On 02/05/15 14:35, Fredxxx wrote:
On 02/05/2015 14:11, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 13:38, Bod wrote:

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.

That's not really the Chromebook's fault though - apples and oranges.
This could happen with any laptop and you left your stuff a) on a work
server; b) on your home server; c) in the cloud.

But I would prefer a device that has the option for lots of local
storage and 100% sync of certain file trees.

Also, to upload stuff on my 0.7Mbs upload connection to the cloud would
take ages. Inconvenient.
My 8" tablet is far more versatile and useful than any Chromebook and
only cost me £129.
You can buy a half decent *proper* laptop for about £200 or less, so why
would anyone want to restrict themselves by buying a Chromebook?

Convenience probably.

I'm looking at one for the kids schoolwork as it's cheaper (less loss if
it gets damaged) and less hassle for me to manage.

Why not desktop? More rugged, and modular.

Doesn't really travel to school too well...

Coffee on keyboard ...................

But I will be adding the SFTP client so they can access all the music
and photos on our home server.

And their schoolwork?

On 02/05/2015 14:35, Fredxxx wrote:
On 02/05/2015 14:11, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 13:38, Bod wrote:

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.

That's not really the Chromebook's fault though - apples and oranges.
This could happen with any laptop and you left your stuff a) on a work
server; b) on your home server; c) in the cloud.

But I would prefer a device that has the option for lots of local
storage and 100% sync of certain file trees.

Also, to upload stuff on my 0.7Mbs upload connection to the cloud would
take ages. Inconvenient.
My 8" tablet is far more versatile and useful than any Chromebook and
only cost me £129.
You can buy a half decent *proper* laptop for about £200 or less, so why
would anyone want to restrict themselves by buying a Chromebook?

Convenience probably.

I'm looking at one for the kids schoolwork as it's cheaper (less loss if
it gets damaged) and less hassle for me to manage.

Why not desktop? More rugged, and modular.

Coffee on keyboard ...................

But I will be adding the SFTP client so they can access all the music
and photos on our home server.

And their schoolwork?

Can one do schoolwork properly on a Chromebook?

On Sat, 2 May 2015 13:18:21 +0100
tony sayer wrote:

In article , Tim Watts
scribeth thus
On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the
much lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec
is low & you have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

+1 I have not used Word, Excel or PP for at least 5 years - just
libreoffice - and that includes dealing and resending work's MS
office documents.


Gave up with Open orifice and Libre office, use this now and its free
'tho there is a paid for version that does a bit more...


http://www.kingsoftstore.com/

That sounds as though it might be worth a try. If it operates more
'smoothly' than Libre Office, it should be worth keeping. I missed some
of the details that Excel could do, but Libre Office can't.
Now I'll have to remember them.......

--
Davey.

In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 02/05/15 13:38, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get
Word compatibility,

More bollox.

I'd say the majority of OEM versions of Windows included with laptops
don't include Word.

??? so waht? You get MSoffice as a package deal at low money and that's
what people stick on for 'compatibility'

So they don't buy Windows to get Word compatibility? They pay extra for it
at some point in the future? You do realise the latest version will cost
you well over 100 quid?

--
*If vegetable oil comes from vegetables, where does baby oil come from? *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In message , The Natural Philosopher
writes
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility, if they go libre office they might as well install linux
from the get go.

Not true for many of the people I know. The big argument for Windows is
the flexibility and adaptability, especially when used for anything
slightly outside the box.
I don't know of anything else that has the availability of internal and
external expansion devices with drivers that work, plus the fact that
often someone, somewhere will have written a program that nearly does
what you want.

My impression remains that Apple is good if you want reliable hardware
and software for a limited range of applications, but it is expensive.
Linux is fine for heavy duty stuff - servers, backups etc., but there
are no drivers for many types of peripheral for the laptops.

Most people I know run a Windows desktop or laptop and an Android tablet
or iPad. My Android phablets are great, with GPS, all the normal things
like bluetooth, access to email and newsgroups, plus the ability to text
if the phone is flat.

Do Chromebooks provide a decent newsreader?


--
Bill

On 02/05/15 15:17, Bod wrote:

Can one do schoolwork properly on a Chromebook?

Primary and secondary school work is mostly:

Type some essays;
Do some online work;
Make a picture;
Read the Internet.

The last one is actually a gain over my day when it meant "go to the
library". Otherwise the rest could just as well be on paper. But the
modern schools seem to like pupils having easy access to computers and
optionally their own which they may take in.

It's also a danger of time wastage too as my library did not have 63
billion pictures of cats, rude jokes (except on the wall in the bogs)
and a free-for-all video section.

On 02/05/2015 16:21, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 15:17, Bod wrote:

Can one do schoolwork properly on a Chromebook?

Primary and secondary school work is mostly:

Type some essays;
Do some online work;
Make a picture;
Read the Internet.

The last one is actually a gain over my day when it meant "go to the
library". Otherwise the rest could just as well be on paper. But the
modern schools seem to like pupils having easy access to computers and
optionally their own which they may take in.

It's also a danger of time wastage too as my library did not have 63
billion pictures of cats, rude jokes (except on the wall in the bogs)
and a free-for-all video section.

Lol.

On 02/05/15 16:15, Bill wrote:
In message , The Natural Philosopher
writes
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get
Word compatibility, if they go libre office they might as well install
linux from the get go.

Not true for many of the people I know. The big argument for Windows is
the flexibility and adaptability, especially when used for anything
slightly outside the box.
I don't know of anything else that has the availability of internal and
external expansion devices with drivers that work, plus the fact that
often someone, somewhere will have written a program that nearly does
what you want.

Er... You just described linux...

And my HP printer worked without installing 400GB of crap. Unlike windows

My impression remains that Apple is good if you want reliable hardware
and software for a limited range of applications, but it is expensive.
Linux is fine for heavy duty stuff - servers, backups etc., but there
are no drivers for many types of peripheral for the laptops.

That is completely untrue.

All my laptops have worked fine and have no trouble talking to the
peripherals I plug in. About the only issue I have is sometimes suspend
goes doolally.

Most people I know run a Windows desktop or laptop and an Android tablet
or iPad. My Android phablets are great, with GPS, all the normal things
like bluetooth, access to email and newsgroups, plus the ability to text
if the phone is flat.

Do Chromebooks provide a decent newsreader?

Good question. Well, thunderbird if you stick linux in Crouton. Apps?
Does not seem to be...

On 02/05/15 12:22, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 02/05/15 12:15, Davey wrote:

In a nutshell! Although when I moved to Libre Office from Excel, I
found it to be more clunky. But it does all I need.


Agreed. I am no fan of MS office OR libre office.

The word processor is too feature full for most purposes and absurdly
quirky, and I now tend to use it just to generate plain text, and if I
want a well laid out doc use Scribus.

+1

The spreadsheets are also quirky at the UI level and unpleasant. I use
them as little as possible. Frank;y if UI have a complex job to do I
generally reach for a C compiler...

I prefer Gnumeric, just as quirky in its way, but the big advantage for
me is that I can cut-paste text tabbed or csv files into a sheet and it
will treat them as a table. Open/Libre Office tends to treat them as a
doc regardless.

On 02/05/2015 14:11, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 13:38, Bod wrote:

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.

That's not really the Chromebook's fault though - apples and oranges.
This could happen with any laptop and you left your stuff a) on a work
server; b) on your home server; c) in the cloud.

Can you not save from a Chrome Book to a USB stick?


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

On 02/05/2015 17:23, The Medway Handyman wrote:
On 02/05/2015 14:11, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 13:38, Bod wrote:

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.

That's not really the Chromebook's fault though - apples and oranges.
This could happen with any laptop and you left your stuff a) on a work
server; b) on your home server; c) in the cloud.

Can you not save from a Chrome Book to a USB stick?


_______________________________________

I dunno, but I have access to all of my stuff *all* of the time and even
when the internet is down.
I don't use the cloud etc.

On 02/05/2015 13:38, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility,

More bollox.

I'd say the majority of OEM versions of Windows included with laptops
don't include Word.


Most windows laptops come with a demo version unless you go for one with
less than 10" screen which used to come with a full version of office
and may still do. The little one I bought the wife came with office 2013
home and student and only cost £169 last year.

If you buy one then they don't cost anymore than chromebooks and can run
chrome software, windows software and all the office software you can
get for linux.

There isn't really any point to chromebooks unless they are cheaper.

On 02/05/2015 17:42, Dennis@home wrote:
On 02/05/2015 13:38, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
since just about the only reason most people buy Windows is to get Word
compatibility,

More bollox.

I'd say the majority of OEM versions of Windows included with laptops
don't include Word.


Most windows laptops come with a demo version unless you go for one with
less than 10" screen which used to come with a full version of office
and may still do. The little one I bought the wife came with office 2013
home and student and only cost £169 last year.

If you buy one then they don't cost anymore than chromebooks and can run
chrome software, windows software and all the office software you can
get for linux.

There isn't really any point to chromebooks unless they are cheaper.

Agreed.

On 02/05/2015 15:12, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 14:35, Fredxxx wrote:
On 02/05/2015 14:11, Tim Watts wrote:
On 02/05/15 13:38, Bod wrote:

What do I do when all of a sudden I need an important document in the
cloud and I am not connected to the internet? Very frustrating.

That's not really the Chromebook's fault though - apples and oranges.
This could happen with any laptop and you left your stuff a) on a work
server; b) on your home server; c) in the cloud.

But I would prefer a device that has the option for lots of local
storage and 100% sync of certain file trees.

Also, to upload stuff on my 0.7Mbs upload connection to the cloud would
take ages. Inconvenient.
My 8" tablet is far more versatile and useful than any Chromebook and
only cost me £129.
You can buy a half decent *proper* laptop for about £200 or less, so
why
would anyone want to restrict themselves by buying a Chromebook?

Convenience probably.

I'm looking at one for the kids schoolwork as it's cheaper (less loss if
it gets damaged) and less hassle for me to manage.

Why not desktop? More rugged, and modular.

Doesn't really travel to school too well...

Well, and there's me thinking that schools banned mobile phones! What
are they going to allow next?


Coffee on keyboard ...................

But I will be adding the SFTP client so they can access all the music
and photos on our home server.

And their schoolwork?

On 02/05/2015 16:32, Tim Watts wrote:

Er... You just described linux...

And my HP printer worked without installing 400GB of crap. Unlike
windows

So did my Brother, but the scanner didn't, nor the FAX and it only
worked on USB and not the network.

However on windows it downloaded the drivers and all of it worked.

On 2 May 2015 16:40:17 GMT
Huge wrote:

On 2015-05-02, Bill wrote:

My impression remains that Apple is good if you want reliable
hardware and software for a limited range of applications, but it
is expensive. Linux is fine for heavy duty stuff - servers, backups
etc., but there are no drivers for many types of peripheral for the
laptops.

I'm afraid your impression is wrong, and has been for several years.

In the recent (last few weeks) I've plugged the following into my
Linux (Mint 17) machine;

- HP OfficeJet 4620
- Blackberry Z10
- Tomtom Satnav
- Garmin Satnav
- External USB disk(s)
- Several USB memory sticks
- Logitech Webcam
- Belkin Wifi dongle
- Bluetooth dongle
- Nikon DSLR (two different ones)

And it's all "just worked". No "downloading drivers", no
manufacturers disk, just plug it in and switch it on.

Admittedly I did have to install the drivers for my Epson V300
scanner, which took, ooh, 30 seconds to do. Download the files.
Double click on them. Done.



In just the five or so years that I have been using Linux, I have seen a
huge improvement in the way it recognises stuff, including the inbuilt
NVIDIA card in the PC. It's all getting better and better.

--
Davey.

On 02/05/15 17:40, Huge wrote:
On 2015-05-02, Bill wrote:

My impression remains that Apple is good if you want reliable hardware
and software for a limited range of applications, but it is expensive.
Linux is fine for heavy duty stuff - servers, backups etc., but there
are no drivers for many types of peripheral for the laptops.

I'm afraid your impression is wrong, and has been for several years.

In the recent (last few weeks) I've plugged the following into my Linux
(Mint 17) machine;

- HP OfficeJet 4620
- Blackberry Z10
- Tomtom Satnav
- Garmin Satnav
- External USB disk(s)
- Several USB memory sticks
- Logitech Webcam
- Belkin Wifi dongle
- Bluetooth dongle
- Nikon DSLR (two different ones)

And it's all "just worked". No "downloading drivers", no manufacturers disk,
just plug it in and switch it on.

Admittedly I did have to install the drivers for my Epson V300 scanner, which
took, ooh, 30 seconds to do. Download the files. Double click on them. Done.


I spent 3 minuets finding and 30 seconds installing software to read an
exfat formatted usb drive...



--
Everything you read in newspapers is absolutely true, except for the
rare story of which you happen to have first-hand knowledge. €“ Erwin Knoll

Tim Watts wrote:
And my HP printer worked without installing 400GB of crap. Unlike
windows

And my Brother network printer just works all the time, unlike XP which
loses it on a regular basis.

Dennis@home wrote:
On 02/05/2015 16:32, Tim Watts wrote:

Er... You just described linux...

And my HP printer worked without installing 400GB of crap. Unlike
windows

So did my Brother, but the scanner didn't, nor the FAX and it only
worked on USB and not the network.

However on windows it downloaded the drivers and all of it worked.



but on Windows, if it'a aything like mine, it won't scan on all the
resolutions available, unlike the Linux scanning app, whose name escapes
me at the moment.

On Sat, 2 May 2015 15:19:15 +0100
Davey wrote:

On Sat, 2 May 2015 13:18:21 +0100
tony sayer wrote:

In article , Tim Watts
scribeth thus
On 01/05/15 23:43, Fredxxx wrote:

Not so. One of the reasons I'm considering Chrome Book is the
much lower price. You can buy cheap windows laptops but the spec
is low & you have to pay extra for word, excel etc.

?? No you don't. I suggest you look at Libre Office.

+1 I have not used Word, Excel or PP for at least 5 years - just
libreoffice - and that includes dealing and resending work's MS
office documents.


Gave up with Open orifice and Libre office, use this now and its
free 'tho there is a paid for version that does a bit more...


http://www.kingsoftstore.com/

That sounds as though it might be worth a try. If it operates more
'smoothly' than Libre Office, it should be worth keeping. I missed
some of the details that Excel could do, but Libre Office can't.
Now I'll have to remember them.......


Oh-oh:
"Windows 2000 / Windows XP / Windows Vista (32bit, 64bit) / Windows 7
(32bit, 64bit) / Windows 8".

No Linux version?

Ah, here it is, well hidden:
http://www.kingsoftstore.com/news/33...x-alpha11.html

--
Davey.