Thinking about laptops
My Macbook Air is currently being inspected by the Apple repair team as I wait to hear how much it will cost to fix my machine.
I'm trying to decide whether or not I want to pay what I'm assuming will be close to the same price as a new device or opt out of the Apple laptop experience completely.
I'm leaning towards getting a cheap, second-hand computer, I can load Linux on and turn it into a general-purpose writing and programming machine.
Although this would mean I can't use apps like Photoshop, Illustrator or Final Cut, I've still got an iMac at home with a cracked Adobe suite, so that shouldn't be an issue if I need to design or edit anything.
All I need is my laptop to be reliable enough for me to both research and write on.
So, here's a list of everything I'm looking for in my new device.
- Linux compatible
- Easy to repair
- Spare parts easily accessible
- Great keyboard
- Durable
- Option to upgrade components
- Utilitarian design
- Reliable
The first thing that comes to mind as I look over this list is a Thinkpad, of course, however, I’m not sure which model to get as there are so many to choose from.
Thankfully though, from what I can see, there’s a lot of information and buying guides online that I’m sure after a couple hours of research I will find something that feels just right.
Along with writing on this machine, I’d like for it to also serve me as an educational tool to help me learn more about the inner workings of computers, which is also the reason why I want to install Linux on it.
I’ve never built my own PC before and think this could be a fun way to start tinkering with computers again. Especially because the last upgrade I can remember doing was putting in extra 4GB of ram into my laptop high school.
It would be really fun turning this into a privacy first, hacking machine, that helps me write my next book.
Will keep you updated on what I end up doing.