I got a 15" Oryx Pro a couple of years ago to replace a 2012 Macbook Pro that was showing its age. The Oryx Pro doesn't feel as solid as the MBP, but it's handled the everyday abuse I put on it over the past two years. It travels in a backpack that's frequently tossed around into the back seat of the car or a chair at the office or house.
None of the parts feel loose or worn on it at this point. I guess a bonus that comes from it not having as solid of a feel to it is that it does not show dents and dings like the MBP.
Pros: Got it with 32GB of Ram and 2TB SSD storage space for less than the cost of a current MBP (64GB Ram was available at the time). It also has a very nice video and audio card. I got it with a matte screen, which Apple dropped from their linup years ago.
Cons: Doesn't jump between network settings as easily as the MBP and only has about two hours of battery life. I still use the MBP for testing wireless setups and it still has a battery life of about four hours on it. Another drawback is that it runs very hot when it's under load.
Yep, I've wound up with a TI99-4/A because Bill Cosby sold them. My parents probably thought that this guy does Fat Albert, Capt. Kangaroo, and Sesame Street, so he's got to be a great guy.
There was a time for typing classes back when everything was a standard IBM Selectric-style keyboard, but that time is long gone. Look around you now at all of the different keyboard layouts. Even different brand PC keyboards have slightly different layouts on them. Then you add into the mix the laptops, tablet, and phones these kids use and you will be teaching them a skill that will not server them well.
Recently I've seen kids setting up the small bluetooth keyboards when using iPads or Apple brand computers. They would prefer the phone-style keyboards over the onscreen or full-sized keyboards and can knock out a page of text quickly with it, but their spelling and grammar are a different story.
-JM
Apple's going to sell a ton of iPads because of this and the book manufacturer's are going to make a lot of money reselling the books each year instead on one large sell to the schools every six or seven years.
If each book my kid's books used was available next year I would save enough to buy an iPad each year.
I don't see a reason not to like this. I save money to the tune of about $600 a year on books if the school's adapt to it by next year, Apple makes money selling new iPads, and then the book publisher also makes money.
Not only that but there are a lot of people restoring the older machines and building home arcades. I know more than a few people doing this and because of this I think there are more working classic arcade games today than there was ten years ago. They are just in private collections these days since all of the arcades are gone.
-JM
I've got it for the PC and it was still working the last time I tested it. I have been meaning to get it out and see if I can make a "backup copy" to the hard drive or something other than the 5.25 disk that it's on. I think it had a bad sector and would copy up to the point of hitting it. When it would get to it then the copy would fail.
I may see if I can put something together and see if it still works, if I've got a drive that is still working.
- gg
Believe it or not, there are several companies out there that have started to reproduce a lot of the hard to find items. With things like artwork there will only be a short run every few years for some of the more rare titles, but the more popular games have reproduction parts available from many vendors.
There's a company that has actually reproduced the yoke for the Star Wars games and they are also looking into having the vector tubes reproduced for the old X-Y games. So the rare stuff is getting easier to find in some cases. It'll be expensive, but at least it's available.
I picked up a Dragon's Lair cabinet a couple of weeks ago that has been converted to some generic 1990's era game. The area where the marquee mounted had been cut to allow a generic marquee to be installed. I can buy the replacement wood panels, marquee brackets, marquee plexi, and the repro marquee itself to restore the cabinet back to its original shape. So a few months of work and a few hundred dollars in parts will get this classic back into working shape.
Videotopia is a museum display that travels. They currently have a setup in Tallahassee, Florida. I saw it last Friday while passing through there. They have everything from the first commercial video game (Computer Space) through some late 1990's era games.
There are more working classic video games today than there were ten years ago. It's not cost effective to refurbish and keep them running commercially, but there are hundreds of home arcades where people collect, restore, and share their games with their friends. I have a home arcade with 60 video games and 5 pinball machines. My collection is small compared to many of the others. So the arcades and games are not gone, just no longer in public.
Do a search online and you may be able to find someone locally with a nice arcade in their home that has an occasional game night open to everyone.
The Xandros on the 701 is spot on for school use. It limits the computer to an appliance that the student can use to type, print, and browse on in a classroom setting.
We remove everything not related to the appliance type use from the desktop so that there's nothing to play with on it or that will allow them to change the settings.
Sixty of these machines were purchased to test this year and the teachers prefer them to the full-sized laptops.
We're looking to buy several hundred of them for next year, but only if the small-sized ASUS is still available.
If not, can an off-the-shelf copy of Xandros be modified to look and feel the same on an Aspire One?
Thanks,
-JM
Looks like their going to lose sales then. The schools I'm in charge of find the smaller ones better for the students. It's used as an appliance to type, print and for some web browsing.
If we wanted a larger sized machine with a hard drive and XP then we'll just buy standard notebooks.
If they give us no options in the size we want then we'll just buy several hundred of them from another manufacturer.
-JM
We had three storms last year that knocked out power and two that damaged the house. The wind itself does cause damage but not enought to mention. However, if you add in the raid that comes from the storm then there's lots of damage. I think that after you get 20" - 30" of rain over a few hours it tends to soften things up for the wind. Trees that would withstand the wind force are pushed over once the ground is water logged. Same goes for the house. If you start getting plywood wet it will seperate and blow apart.
I agree it would be a good thing if the pricing were better. I could see getting them in addition to the books. I prefer to have a book in hand most of the time. But these would be great if you were looking for info quickly or to browse while on the road. However, I can't afford to rebuy everything over again at full price. I think a good range would be $10-$15 for the core sized books and less for the smaller books or modules.
...in a glass houses. They shouldn't complain about the iPod or any other sweatshop made items until they look around a bit at the stuff they wear, use or buy every day. I challenge everyone here to look at their purchases for a week and see where they are made. I've done it. In the past week a bottle of shampoo and a plastic basket that I bought were the only two things not made in China, Mexico, Honduras, etc., etc. I know the conditions and pay are not up to the standards in my country but the only other option is not to buy anything.
Also, a friend owns a company that needed a large quantity of small, plastic parts. They tried to locate a mfg here in the States. The result was that there are no longer companies here which have the equipment to make it. So he, like everyone else, now has them made in China.
It seems like the first few times the controller would be unique enough to be fun. But, with some games it would get old quickly. Take a football game for example. The first time you made the passing motion to pass the football would be cool. Three hours and 157 passes later it may not be so much fun.
I'm hoping that there are options in all of the games to choose between controller modes in case people tire of it quickly.
If this happens it's only a matter of time before the pay for radio gets ads. We've had DirecTV for 10-12 years now. When we first got it, it was great. We paid $1000 for the equipment but almost all of the channels were ad free and showed full length movies or series. Now almost all of the standard channels show commercials every five minutes and a majority of the shows on all channels are reality shows. I've not watched the thing in at least two years and have an ongoing battle with my wife to get rid of it and just buy the things we are interested in on DVD. The only thing holding her back from doing this is the fact that she's can't live without baseball/football. I think that within the next few years they will require a small pay-per-view on each of the sporting events and that will be what pushes her over the edge on getting rid of the system.
There's a very easy vesion of basic called Liberty Basic. I've not used it for a couple of years now but they still have a website up and I'm going to look into it again. Not only is it simple, it is well documented and had many tutorials and examples to follow. The last time I used it I had it take Scantron data from a survey and format it for a database and produce statistics on the batch of surveys. Worked great for free and it has a runtime (I paid something like $25 to get the version w/runtime) so the user just clicked the icon to run the program.
If I wanted to make snapping, passing or any other football related motions then I'd grab the Nerf and go out in the yard with the kids. When I play a game I want to veg out on the couch in the AC and relax.
The gas stations near my house can't keep people from stealing the paper towels and squeege to clean the windshield. How do they keep those things from being stolen or destroyed in the attempt to steal them?
You need to talk to another sales rep. I work at a high school with about 1100 users. Cost per user is $2.50 each. Unlimited servers, Zen for both the desktop and servers plus some other stuff I can't think of off the top of my head. Also got access to Suse when I have the time to install and test it.
We have to run a seperate server for each app that requires Windows as the server. So, instead of one server to run the apps we have four.
Our Linux servers do multiple duties. Same goes for the Novell servers we use. They all perform multiple tasks on top of the standard filesharing and print q's.
We had to pay for each copy of Windows server, Linux was free to install anywhere and the Novell is a site license per student so we can install it as many times as we want without additional fees.
What I'd like to see is the number of new installs in the past year. Win vs. Unix vs. Linux vs. others.
I can rememberthe local Radio Shack back in the early 80's. It was in the same shopping center as the local grocery store and I'd go in there while my mom was shopping. I'd stare into the glass counter and lust after the T-100 on the top shelf for forty-five minutes until she came by to drag me out of the store.
A few years later I can remember going there frequently to pick up electric motors, switches and etc. for projects I was working on at the time. They had just about everything you would need. There'd also be a lot of neat stuff that you didn't need but was fun to look through while shopping.
Fast forward to this past Christmas. I went into the local Radio Shack to have a look around and all that they have is a small selection of a few items. Want a cell phone? They have a shelf with a few of them. The store next door has dozens of models. Same goes for all of the other items that they carry. They have a few of each model of popular electronic item but don't specialize in anything.
I'm also glad I didn't need help. I guess they're getting what they pay for at minimum wage but the kids working the store looked like the customers were too much effort to help between the smoke breaks.
Thankfully there is still a local owned electronics distributor that has the good stuff and a knowledgeable staff. they are on the other side of town from where I live but it's well worth the trip.
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To be fair, I did know about the short battery run time before the purchse it, so I have no complaints about it.
I got a 15" Oryx Pro a couple of years ago to replace a 2012 Macbook Pro that was showing its age. The Oryx Pro doesn't feel as solid as the MBP, but it's handled the everyday abuse I put on it over the past two years. It travels in a backpack that's frequently tossed around into the back seat of the car or a chair at the office or house. None of the parts feel loose or worn on it at this point. I guess a bonus that comes from it not having as solid of a feel to it is that it does not show dents and dings like the MBP. Pros: Got it with 32GB of Ram and 2TB SSD storage space for less than the cost of a current MBP (64GB Ram was available at the time). It also has a very nice video and audio card. I got it with a matte screen, which Apple dropped from their linup years ago. Cons: Doesn't jump between network settings as easily as the MBP and only has about two hours of battery life. I still use the MBP for testing wireless setups and it still has a battery life of about four hours on it. Another drawback is that it runs very hot when it's under load.
Yep, I've wound up with a TI99-4/A because Bill Cosby sold them. My parents probably thought that this guy does Fat Albert, Capt. Kangaroo, and Sesame Street, so he's got to be a great guy.
The Shat sells Commodore equipment, not Apple.
There was a time for typing classes back when everything was a standard IBM Selectric-style keyboard, but that time is long gone. Look around you now at all of the different keyboard layouts. Even different brand PC keyboards have slightly different layouts on them. Then you add into the mix the laptops, tablet, and phones these kids use and you will be teaching them a skill that will not server them well. Recently I've seen kids setting up the small bluetooth keyboards when using iPads or Apple brand computers. They would prefer the phone-style keyboards over the onscreen or full-sized keyboards and can knock out a page of text quickly with it, but their spelling and grammar are a different story. -JM
Apple's going to sell a ton of iPads because of this and the book manufacturer's are going to make a lot of money reselling the books each year instead on one large sell to the schools every six or seven years. If each book my kid's books used was available next year I would save enough to buy an iPad each year. I don't see a reason not to like this. I save money to the tune of about $600 a year on books if the school's adapt to it by next year, Apple makes money selling new iPads, and then the book publisher also makes money.
Not only that but there are a lot of people restoring the older machines and building home arcades. I know more than a few people doing this and because of this I think there are more working classic arcade games today than there was ten years ago. They are just in private collections these days since all of the arcades are gone. -JM
I've got it for the PC and it was still working the last time I tested it. I have been meaning to get it out and see if I can make a "backup copy" to the hard drive or something other than the 5.25 disk that it's on. I think it had a bad sector and would copy up to the point of hitting it. When it would get to it then the copy would fail. I may see if I can put something together and see if it still works, if I've got a drive that is still working. - gg
Believe it or not, there are several companies out there that have started to reproduce a lot of the hard to find items. With things like artwork there will only be a short run every few years for some of the more rare titles, but the more popular games have reproduction parts available from many vendors.
There's a company that has actually reproduced the yoke for the Star Wars games and they are also looking into having the vector tubes reproduced for the old X-Y games. So the rare stuff is getting easier to find in some cases. It'll be expensive, but at least it's available.
I picked up a Dragon's Lair cabinet a couple of weeks ago that has been converted to some generic 1990's era game. The area where the marquee mounted had been cut to allow a generic marquee to be installed. I can buy the replacement wood panels, marquee brackets, marquee plexi, and the repro marquee itself to restore the cabinet back to its original shape. So a few months of work and a few hundred dollars in parts will get this classic back into working shape.
Videotopia is a museum display that travels. They currently have a setup in Tallahassee, Florida. I saw it last Friday while passing through there. They have everything from the first commercial video game (Computer Space) through some late 1990's era games.
There are more working classic video games today than there were ten years ago. It's not cost effective to refurbish and keep them running commercially, but there are hundreds of home arcades where people collect, restore, and share their games with their friends. I have a home arcade with 60 video games and 5 pinball machines. My collection is small compared to many of the others. So the arcades and games are not gone, just no longer in public.
Do a search online and you may be able to find someone locally with a nice arcade in their home that has an occasional game night open to everyone.
The Xandros on the 701 is spot on for school use. It limits the computer to an appliance that the student can use to type, print, and browse on in a classroom setting. We remove everything not related to the appliance type use from the desktop so that there's nothing to play with on it or that will allow them to change the settings. Sixty of these machines were purchased to test this year and the teachers prefer them to the full-sized laptops. We're looking to buy several hundred of them for next year, but only if the small-sized ASUS is still available. If not, can an off-the-shelf copy of Xandros be modified to look and feel the same on an Aspire One? Thanks, -JM
Looks like their going to lose sales then. The schools I'm in charge of find the smaller ones better for the students. It's used as an appliance to type, print and for some web browsing. If we wanted a larger sized machine with a hard drive and XP then we'll just buy standard notebooks. If they give us no options in the size we want then we'll just buy several hundred of them from another manufacturer. -JM
If her hair were a darker color in that picture she'd look like Gozer from the Ghostbuster's movie.
-JM
-JM
Also, a friend owns a company that needed a large quantity of small, plastic parts. They tried to locate a mfg here in the States. The result was that there are no longer companies here which have the equipment to make it. So he, like everyone else, now has them made in China.
-JM
-JM
I'm hoping that there are options in all of the games to choose between controller modes in case people tire of it quickly.
-JM
-JM
-JM
-JM
windshield. How do they keep those things from being stolen or destroyed in the attempt to steal them?
-JM
-JM
We have to run a seperate server for each app that requires Windows as the server. So, instead of one server to run the apps we have four.
Our Linux servers do multiple duties. Same goes for the Novell servers we use. They all perform multiple tasks on top of the standard filesharing and print q's.
We had to pay for each copy of Windows server, Linux was free to install anywhere and the Novell is a site license per student so we can install it as many times as we want without additional fees.
What I'd like to see is the number of new installs in the past year. Win vs. Unix vs. Linux vs. others.
-JM
I can rememberthe local Radio Shack back in the early 80's. It was in the same shopping center as the local grocery store and I'd go in there while my mom was shopping. I'd stare into the glass counter and lust after the T-100 on the top shelf for forty-five minutes until she came by to drag me out of the store.
A few years later I can remember going there frequently to pick up electric motors, switches and etc. for projects I was working on at the time. They had just about everything you would need. There'd also be a lot of neat stuff that you didn't need but was fun to look through while shopping.
Fast forward to this past Christmas. I went into the local Radio Shack to have a look around and all that they have is a small selection of a few items. Want a cell phone? They have a shelf with a few of them. The store next door has dozens of models. Same goes for all of the other items that they carry. They have a few of each model of popular electronic item but don't specialize in anything.
I'm also glad I didn't need help. I guess they're getting what they pay for at minimum wage but the kids working the store looked like the customers were too much effort to help between the smoke breaks.
Thankfully there is still a local owned electronics distributor that has the good stuff and a knowledgeable staff. they are on the other side of town from where I live but it's well worth the trip.
-JM