I'd recommend NOT using a MacBook. I've been using a MacBook for over a year now, and the hardware quirks that show up in Linux are extremely annoying (i.e., random video buffer corruption). In fact, I am planning on "upgrading" to the new EEE which is due out soon, with 20GB of SSD storage and a slightly larger screen. The EEE does have an external VGA port, which I intend to connect to the 21 inch monitor on my desk for stationary use. I've found that 90% of my heavy lifting (cpu-wise) is now done on remote machines anyway, so the light and compact EEE is looking like a very nice option for me.
Regarding the proprietary OS version running on the EEE, several people have gotten Ubuntu to run on it. Some of the features have been broken at various points, such as power control and wifi, but ASUS has been working to release as much code as they can. Keep in mind that ASUS is bound by contracts with the component manufacturers. Like with the Openmoko situation, there are certain things that the hardware vendors cannot open source by law (stupid U.S. laws). The nice thing is that ASUS has made an effort to provide as much as they can. The power control stuff has been released, and I hear there are hacks to get the rest of the hardware fully functional without too much effort.
~Bradley
Jeffrey Watts wrote:
I'd recommend a MacBook. Wonderful hardware, good development environment, very easy to use. And, of course, it's Unix. If you want to run Linux, you can install it on it or use Parallels.
Jeffrey.
On Fri, Apr 25, 2008 at 4:13 PM, Arthur Pemberton [email protected] wrote:
I have had one suggestion so far that the screen size makes this _not_ a good machine (even) for casual coding.
My bro is far from a hard core coder.... infact the idea is to get him interested, or at least allow him the chance.