# The Writer's Circle – Week #11 (Your Writer's Tool-kit)



## Commissar Ploss (Feb 29, 2008)

The Writer's Circle – Week #11 (Your Writer's Tool-kit)

Hello everyone and welcome to Week #11 of The Writer's Circle. Now that you have the software you need to get started writing that magnum opus of yours, your going to need something to write it with. Lets say you're on vacation to the Swiss Alps and all of a sudden, inspiration strikes! But alas the software you just downloaded from Week #9 is only on your home desktop computer...sad... You could have avoided this. I know what you're thinking, “If I would have brought my laptop along, this wouldn't have happened.” But what if you didn't want to lug your big, gaming laptop all the way to the top of Everest. I don't blame you. What if there was a smaller, more portable kind of device that did all of the same things as your bulky super hi-tech gaming rig at home? That is what we are going to talk about today. Lets talk about Netbooks. I'm sure you've heard of them by now. They are those nifty little ultra-portable mini-laptops that people have been raving about. You've seen them in commercials, hell, even phone companies are giving them away with internet bundles now. Have you ever thought of using one as your portable writing desk? An article I found this week in the April 2009 issue of the _Writer_ magazine points out the bonuses of having a Netbook. Written by Dan Sarluca, it will be topic of discussion for this week. 



> Good things come in small packages
> by: Dan Sarluca
> 
> Want to write on the go, but the thought of toting around your aging laptop is weighing you down? Maybe you should look into the newest generation of mini-laptops known as sub-notebooks or netbooks.
> ...


Alright, now with what we've seen here, its a great start. One thing I would suggest is to put the software that you liked from Week #9 onto your nifty new netbook and you'll be all set! Now you might be wondering, “Dude, Commissar Ploss! Where in this God-Emperor forsaken world do I find one of these spankin' new machinations of humanity?” Well, let me give you a link to the place where I buy all of my computer needs. 

www.Tigerdirect.com 

its the best place (for me) to find things at reasonable prices, with fast shipping. Here is a direct link to the netbooks section.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/campaigns/campaigntemplate.asp?CampaignID=973&srkey=Netbooks

Or you can take a drive to your nearest BestBuy store (for US people), or European equivalent. Any chain store that is selling computer electronics will have some netbooks that you can try out and buy. Go ahead, take the plunge, and get yourself one of these newfangled devices. Don't be like the Imperium. Embrace the new technology as a good thing! Don't shun it away!

Discussion questions:

1.What did you think of this weeks article?

2.Is a netbook something you think you will look into for the future?

3.Or do you think you'll stick with your laptop?

Write on,

Commissar Ploss


----------



## IntereoVivo (Jul 14, 2009)

Good article. I'm waiting to buy mine after Google Chrome comes out. 

Have you talked about/looked into Google Documents?


----------



## Commissar Ploss (Feb 29, 2008)

Not yet, however it just seems like another word processor to me, from what i've heard its got just as many glitches as Microsoft Word. However, is it browser based? or is it a downloadable program? I seem to have forgotten...

CP


----------



## IntereoVivo (Jul 14, 2009)

Commissar Ploss said:


> Not yet, however it just seems like another word processor to me, from what i've heard its got just as many glitches as Microsoft Word. However, is it browser based? or is it a downloadable program? I seem to have forgotten...


Its very much like Microsoft Word, however it is browser based and stores all your documents in the "cloud" (Google's term from internet storage space). This means that where ever you are, if you can jump online you can access said documents. In addition you can pull them down onto the computer you are using if you are not going to have web access and you can share them with other people (who have access to Google document through their gmail account) who can edit (complete with highlighters, strikeout lines, etc...).

Google Chrome is going to be an completely web based operating system for web books. It will cut startup time to practically nil (as long as it takes to connect to the internet) and will make jotting down a quick note when inspiration strikes that much easier.

You should check out Google Documents though. Good times.


----------



## Svartmetall (Jun 16, 2008)

My fingers are way too big to use a netbook keyboard, sadly, otherwise I actually might have been tempted by one; yes, in theory I could use a full-size USB keyboard with one, but then that sort of defeats the point of using a netbook in the first place. I'll stick to the battered and gunk-laden 9-year-old Microsoft 101-key keyboard (PS/2! Old school!) that's plugged into my desktop; it looks like something a Great Unclean One sat on, but at least it _works_.

Also, from working in tech support myself, I'd say the following about netbooks; bear in mind that since they have no optical drive, if you need to reload your OS, you have to either use a USB stick or an external DVDROM to do so, and that is often tricky and buggy. Also, the whole 'cloud' thing reeks of buzzword-ism - if your files are stored on your machine's hard drive, you can work on them wherever and whenever, but if you have no net connection where you are for whatever reason and you're relying on 'cloud' apps and storage - you're screwed. Likewise with a web-based OS; in terms of reliability, security and general-purpose usablity, I can't see anything _properly_ taking the place of having OS, applications and files stored on your local machine for a very long time to come.


----------



## IntereoVivo (Jul 14, 2009)

@Svartmetall: You bring up some good points, however, us die hards out here can get service through cell phone companies for internet anywhere you can get a phone signal, which is just about everywhere you would take a netbook. In addition, it is very likely that Google documents will give you the option of storing your documents on your netbook as well as online if you are running Chrome. 

I don't mean in any way to suggest a flawless system, just one that is tailored to those of us who spend a LOT of time online for one reason or another. As far as I understand, Google Chrome will be a good bit more efficient then most OS because it doesn't run all the peripheral programs that you never use and it's security will be comparable to a Mac due to a similar security design. I totally agree that it will not have the versatility that the better established OS' do, however, for a part time/hobby writer like myself it could potentially be a great fit.


----------



## Commissar Ploss (Feb 29, 2008)

you both make great points. However i just can't see myself pulling away from Openoffice.org anytime soon, or ever for that matter. Its just something that is too ingrained in my system for me to even contemplate using anything else. lol idk why i'm so stubborn when it comes to my word processing programs, but i feel that same way about my OS's as well. I'm a windows freak, always have been and always will be. Death to the Mac whores! (no offense) 

My hands are also on the meaty side. However, i took a recent trip to bestbuy and found that not all of the netbooks have uber small keyboards. some actually feel like full size keyboards you would get on a regular laptop. yet they are the same size. i guess just a few millimeters make a big difference. 

Like Svart, i think that not having complete control over your own stuff, i.e. availability when not connected to the interwebs, makes for a very touchy system...because then you could be in a soundproof room 4 mile below the earth and still be able to write that shortstory you've had bouncing around your brainpan all day long. 

CP


----------

