Oh I thought you meant to mix and record music or something. If the external speakers are USB they'll work. I don't know about the regular audio jack. I'll check when I'm home.
yes because the keyboard is the most important thing on a computer , not the processing speed, memory, or storage ... someone best tell Intel so they don't waste any more money....
If you don't see the point of the query, then move on. Your apprehension of the question is not a requisite for the question to be asked, and, as you can plainly see from the copious, varied responses, there most certainly are different needs and requirements for end users; hence, there are uncounted models of computers on the market. This thread is a discussion of those computers and how they may or may not satisfy certain end needs of respective users. Your comment as to the query being "such [a] stupid question" is in no way constructive or conducive to the furtherance of the conversation. I ask you to have to have a care as regards your forum engagement. This will be the only time I ask.
I too, like to listen to music (when I write). You probably already have external speakers but a couple of things to consider: external BT stereo speakers - I have a Bluedio BS-3 which was quite inexpensive and produces great sound a BT dongle which allows you to connect earbuds of your choice - I have a couple of these and I get 6 or more hours from a charge, plus I'm not wired directly to the laptop. I have Bose QC (ANC) earbuds and they're quite nice, but Audio Technica has a more affordable equivalent that are also very good. The ANC on the Bose is sensational for plane travel.
To be honest I'm disappointed with what is available for writing. I would like something with a 100% transparent screen except where the text is.
I use a HP Stream 11 inch laptop. Has next to no RAM, but for writing and internet surfing solely, it is magnificent. Its so light, its almost like a tablet. I take it everywhere and couldn't have written my latest book without it. Its particuarly handy if you write out and about (I like to use coffee shops and pubs). Comparitively cheap as well. http://www.trustedreviews.com/hp-stream-11-review
I just use a Samsung Chromebook with a pair of headphones to listen to music from YouTube in the background. Chromebooks are very portable, anyway. Also, make sure you can write your book on your phone or tablet, even though it's a nightmare to write in mobile. Just in case. I use Google Drive for these needs. It works very well. I'm a simple guy.
Make sure you get something with an illuminated keyboard. When you want to write in the dark, those are genius.
Oh , i like using my Acer laptop , it is light and easy to carry. What's more, the hardware and software in the computer are complete.
I've only had a few laptops I've written on, but as long as it ran Open Office, I never really noticed that much of a difference between them. I've never been a huge fan of the keyboards, though, so usually I'd just plug a full size one into the USB. I have, however, gotten a little fond of using my Android tablet and Google Docs for writing when I'm not at my desk. Again, with a full size keyboard plugged into it through a USB adapter. It's more legible than my handwriting and more portable than my old Acer and uses far less power, too.
I use a combination of a MacBook Pro and an iPad. I find these perfect. I use Scrivener synced via Dropbox.
Now it's always been my understanding that the best way to maintain rechargeable batteries is to always run them dead before recharging (for at least 8 hours). Batteries are shit anyway! They put a man on the moon almost 50 years ago, and yet they still can't give us a portable and perpetual power source.
So I can safely assume I am the weird one and use my phone to write. Like I have a tablet, a laptop, and even a powerful PC rig and I write best when I am on my phone.
Ahhhh... No. Not with Li-based batteries, which are now most common in laptops and other modern mobile devices (it used to be as you say for Ni-based batteries). Li batteries like to have voltage. They do not develop faults when discharged partially (like Ni batteries did). Hence, the recommendation is to top them off whenever possible. (There is a saying that Li batteries only have a limited number of charging cycles, and that each plugging in to the charger takes the count one down. As far as my own experience as physicist, and my own knowledge of the science literature goes, that's a myth.) The only reason to let Li batteries to run down completely is to calibrate the battery indicator.
Macs have a cycle count that you can check. If a battery starts to under perform before it gets to the recommended limit they replace it for free. When mine was new I got about 6/7 hours. When it reached the limit (1000 full charge cycles I think) after about 4 years it was down to about 3 hours. Quite soon after that it rapidly declined and I replaced it. The current advice from Apple is to charge how and when you please.
Sigh. Yeah, I know. Okay, longer thing: First, you may notice that my recommendation is identical to Apple's. Second, Apple's counter is not completely rooted in the scientific/engineering reasons why batteries fail. It's not a simple counter of plugging in – they count complete charging cycle as if the battery had been completely drained. Discharge half the battery, plug in to charge to full, discharge to one half again, and charge again to full is one cycle, not two, as one may assume. Empirically, this counter has been found to be an easily understandable indicator of battery health that somehow correlates with battery degradation, but it's not a direct indicator of the things that go on inside that make the battery go bad. Personally, with my understanding of battery chemistry and technology, I would prefer if they would not use that counter, as it mostly perpetuates the 'myth' of Li batteries have limited charging cycles, which is not exactly true (but not exactly wrong. It's more complicated and part of ongoing research. The correlation between that counter and battery health may fail with the next generation of batteries). Hence the sigh.
Just relating my experience there. Every one I know who is a Mac user has found that not long after the 1000 cycles their battery begins to decline. I have no clue about the science involved. This thread is about what device is best for writing. I have found it to be a Mac. For some writers the time a battery will last is important, hence my post.
MacBookPro. Lighted keyboard Solid-State drive (hard drive without moving parts. I can toss it across a room onto a bed or couch and not worry about hard drive death.) Go into screen settings and switch away from the blue light, reduce strain & glare iword is waaaaay better than word ever was or could be (unless corel had kept it) Go into settings and set the two finger as a right click on touch pad
Yeah, it's the keyboard issue (I hate flat keyboards) and the need to recharge batteries that keeps me using my desktop. We've got a MacBook Air, but neither my husband nor I really uses it. It's a great wee machine ...but that keyboard... AARGH. If I were on the go a lot, I'd love having a laptop to take with me ...but here's the thing. I'm not. I write at home. It bothers me a bit that there seems to be a push to get people to buy laptops instead of desktop computers. Laptops are great for portability, but if that's not an issue, I think desktops are better. Better choice of keyboards, and all you need to do is plug it in and turn it on. No batteries to keep charging up. Ideally, I think my husband and I have the best solution. Desktop AND laptop. It's nice to have a laptop available for a power cut (provided it's kept charged) or those times when you want to sit somewhere besides your desk to use the computer. But I'll fight like hell against anybody who wants to take my desktop computer away!
I don't think the MacBookPro is the best choice for writing , There are clear advantages in business.
