The TI-89 runs for weeks/months on a set of AAAs, boots quickly, and has a bunch of nice hardware keys that make it perfect for entering math problems.
Yes, it's too expensive. But it's a darn useful device.
I am constantly disturbed by how many people know who Maddona is but don't know who Jonas Salk was.
What style of music did he play ?
Certified? What's this "certified"?
People should have the right to repair, and have access to the necessary knowledge. Period.
Otherwise, we deepen the already vast split between the people who create and understand our technology, and the people who are merely consumers. Eloi.
We reached some kind of zenith around the middle of the last century - most the the kids who didn't live in the center city knew how to fix their bikes, lawnmowers, tractors, and cars. Some could fix their radios or wire a house. No more. Leave it to the "certified" professionals. After all, you wouldn't want a car on the road which was improperly repaired, it might hurt someone. Slippery slope, guys.
I'm reading this on an eeePC 1000HE that cost me $375. It's no workstation, but who wants to lug one of those around when all you want to do is browse, check email, and do some light development? I've used it during a Python sprint, and it's just fine. A 10 inch 1024x600 is kinda small for development, but it's passable.
I routinely get 8 hours out of the battery, so I rarely plug it in while using it, and generally leave the charger at home. And when I do plug it in during use, the charger is strong enough and the laptop drain small enough that the battery will recharge 100% in 2-3 hours even while using it on a wifi link.
Lawrence Radiation Laboratory keeps all its data in an old gray trunk.
