On Monday 08 November 2010 18:16:00 Alan McKinnon wrote: > Apparently, though unproven, at 18:59 on Monday 08 November 2010, James did > > opine thusly: > > Hello, > > > > OK, I want a 10" or so, netbook that'll > > run windows and gentoo on dual boot. > > > > I'd like to stay under $200, but in > > no way over $300.00 . w...@ireless > > and wired Ethernet are a must. > > I can't advise you much on what to buy, I'm on the other side of the > planet. But I can give you tips about what I've found workable with mine > (Acer Aspire One A110). > > 1. 600 pixels vertically is not enough, not even with Ubuntu and Unity. Too > many dialogs just don't fit and it'll take a while for them all to get > fixed. Most web pages are virtually unusable. 1024 x 768 is the minimum I > would recommend anyone to use.
I agree on this, although I do happily use mine with 600 vertical. (9" screen) > 2. Those SSDs are shite. Get a mechanical drive. 8G is also not enough and > the write performance is pathetic. You must have a lesser then then I've got? I have quite decent read/write performance with the 16GB SSD in mine (Asus EEE901) I think it's a shame there aren't more Netbooks with SSDs. Too many manufacturers and users tend to see these as small laptop- replacements. These are meant for webbrowsing, email,... NOT to use to do your doctorate... > 3. From what I've seen, both wired and wireless is pretty much the norm, > using bog standard interface hardware. The only thing to watch out for is > that you are not unlucky enough to get one with below-average Linux > support (like the Ath5k 2 years ago). I'd be hard-pressed to find one without wired and wireless ethernet. I would, however, also add Bluetooth to the list. Being able to link wirelessly to your mobile for mobile internet is useful. > 4. Make sure you are comfortable with the keyboard. They tend to be 80% of > full-sized so there's not much margin for error. Use it as much as possible > before you buy. Small hands help (don't have those) but also an extra keyboard could help here already. > 5. Got kids younger than 12? Don't let them find out you have one :-) Best tip of all, although the smaller keyboard seems to be designed with kids' hands in mind :) -- Joost
