Darice de Cuba

Taken with iPhone

I switched to Apple on January 2004, I had saved enough money and I bought an iBook G4 with a 12inch screen. I used the iBook daily as my main machine and kept using my Windows box on the side, mostly for downloading, watching DVD’s and website testing in Internet Explorer.

On January 2006 I bought a Mac Mini PowerPC with my student discount. Since then I moved the window box having no use anymore for it but for testing in IE browsers. In the last five years the only time I use Windows is at work. I still hear the argument that Apple is a closed OS that a lot of apps used on Windows are not available. But honestly I never had that problem. For anything I could find an app and most of the times better ones than on Windows.

The only con of Apple is their hardware prices, which I don’t really take that as really bad considering how much thought and care they put in the design of it. But repairing an Apple hardware that doesn’t fall under warranty anymore is the worst. You are better off just buying a new one.

Lately I have been missing having a laptop so that I can work/internet at a food joint instead of staying home all the time. But I don’t want to haul a heavy laptop around. Ideally I would buy a Mac Air, but that is way beyond my budget. And since I’m an Apple user I haven’t kept up to date at all with the PC developments. So when my boss told me you can install OS X on a cheap laptop I hit Google till I knew all there was to know about it.

Luckily the local computer shop had a sale going. I bought the MSI Wind U100w-049EU.

Specs:

I already own a retail OS X Leopard DVD, but I don’t have the patience to fiddle with a boot loader first so I used a slipstream DVD. I wiped Windows out instead of doing a dual boot although I have Windows 7 RC which I might install someday. But for now I have only OS X Leopard 10.5.7 as my main and only OS. Only for the Ralink Wireless Card I had to download a driver from Ralink their site.

I haven’t encountered any problems yet, it runs stable, even faster then my Mac Mini. The only thing I didn’t install are the developers tools. I might try that later on. I read that the mic and audio don;t work well, but being deaf that isn’t a problem for me. But I know from others that my audio works fine.

So now I’m lying in bed writing this entry, I don’t have a good night lamp so I improvised by clipping my book light on my screen so I can see the keyboard. I bough the Wind on Monday so I have yet to take it somewhere else like my favorite sandwich place and see if I can do some website work, while enjoying a nice lunch without missing my Mac Mini and 19 inch wide screen too much.

Some word of advice if you want to buy a netbook:

• It is not made to be used as a main machine.
• If you don’t like or can’t use a small keyboard and trackpad you are better off with a regular laptop.
• Photoshop, video editing], gaming; forget about those on a netbook.

See the netbook as an on the go gadget: in the train finishing that paper before you get to school or work. To do light work somewhere else than behind your desk. For vacation to store your photos and keep in touch with family and friends.

All in all I’m happy with this purchase and that I have a portable with OS X that I can take anywhere with me without much fuss. Only thing missing are a couple of stickers, want to completly cover the top with them. I wish I knew how to get Wordpress and Flickr stickers considering I use these daily.