How Small a PC Is Too Small?

Banner~! recommends an article in IBTimes on the search for the ideal size for an ultraportable computer. One device mentioned is Paul Allen's FlipStart, discussed here recently. After watching early users fumble and nearly drop an early version of the FlipStart while trying to perform a three-finger salute, designers ended up including a single key labeled "CtrlAltDel" in the version that will be shipping soon. From the article: "Each device maker... has a different sense of how small an ultra-mobile can get before it becomes impossible to use. For instance, Microsoft thinks the tiniest screen possible measures 7 inches diagonally, but FlipStart Labs settled on 5.6 inches."

Comments

Re:These are not PC issues, but Windows issues.

[The MAZZTer]

Ctrl + Alt + Del doesn't open the Task Manager on all versions of Windows, just "Home" versions. "Pro" or "Business/Enterprise/Ultimate" versions instead have a menu which allows you to launch the task manager, log off, switch user, lock the computer, or change your password.

Re:These are not PC issues, but Windows issues.

[sessamoid]

And the funny (or sad?) thing is that this is only "necessary" in Windows because of all the crap that Windows can get infected with. Neither Linux nor OSX needed to implement the ctrl-alt-del scheme.

OS X uses Command-Option-Escape, which can be activated easily with a thumb and middle finger of the same hand. I don't have to use it often, but things to hang in any OS. Force Quit issues a kill command to the offending application.

Re:These are not PC issues, but Windows issues.

[TeknoHog]

It was there in the BIOS of DOS machines, hardwired to soft reboot, before Windows even existed. Wikipedia seems to confirm my memories.