Have Laptop Will Travel

Oink is no more

Originally posted on October 23, 2007 @ 11:35 pm

Ab ig blow was dealt to the global torrent community today when the popular music tracker Oink.cd was shut down by authorities.

Oink was an invite only music torrent site that has acquired a reputation for having some of the best music releases on the internet. It has become a haven for hardcore music fans — the type who needs a daily fix of new music and who want to listen to albums first on MP3s before deciding to buy albums.

the raid was done by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which has an affiliation with the RIAA. According to the IFPI, they conducted a two year investigation into Oink before mounting the raid. I’ve seen a newsfeed from the BBC regarding this raid and that “two year” claim seems highly suspect. A number of accusations were so obviously erroneous. First, Oink did not ask members to pay for a subscription. Second, Oink was only a tracker and never released the music files themselves.

I have  very firm stand about the insistence of the music industry to desperately implement copyright issues in a world that has already changed. The music industry should change its old, and obviously outdated practice and begin to change with the times.

Oink, you will be forever remembered.

OLPC Foundation announces production of low cost laptops

Originally posted on November 7, 2007 @ 11:43 pm

I have always been a firm believer of the aims and goals of the One Laptop per Child Foundation. I really believe that giving children in the developing world access to information and computers will have a tremendous impact not only on these children on a personal level but also on their respective countries in the future.

Thus, it was with great excitement when I read that the Foundation announced that production of new affordable computers have already begun.

According to the Foundation, Quanta Computer of Taiwan has commenced commercial production of its product — a lime green and white XO laptop computer. Already, orders have come in from Uruguay and Mongolia. The computers will also be made available to American and Canadian children through a 399 dollar holiday charity program that would subsidize the purchase of a second machine for children in other countries.

The XO laptop runs on Linux and is designed primarily for elementary school children. This early, is already proving to have an impact on the computer industry. The Fondation, which was founded by Nicholas Negroponte, is already creating ripples in the market, leading other manufacturers to produce their own versions of low cost computers for the consumption of target audiences like women and children.

I really think that that OLPC initiative will benefit us consumers in the long term. I envision laptops to drop prices significantly in the next four to five years and eventually achieving a critical pricepoint where they can viably compete with desktops.

Animated discussion regarding the Acer lappies

Originally posted on August 30, 2007 @ 12:58 am

There’s been a lot of movement in terms of the replies coming in from readers of Have Laptop Will Travel’s entry on the Acer 4520 keyboard lag problem and its accompanying solution. People who have tried the fix (which is to simply deactivate the touchpad) reported that this indeed worked. Of course, this is only a palliative solution because you have to continually deactivate the touchpad to fix the lag.

Tshanhon, our HLWT reader from Singapore, reported that there is a BIOS update forthcoming that could address the keyboard lag problem once and for all. We’ll wait for more updates about this from our Acer lappy users and see if Acer has finally fixed the problem through the update. another HLWT visitor, turbO from Norway, suggested a rollback of the driver for the touchpad. I would really appreciate if he would post another comment as to what version to go back to and where to get the drivers so it can also help other Acer users with the same probem.

Lastly, Tshanhon, posted that some Acer owners are having problems taking advantage of their international warranty. Apparently, Tshanhon said, the company has made a number of submodels that are only available in specific countries. This is posing a problem for Acer owners who want to get support for a submodel in a country that does not carry the particular model. If you have encountered a similar problem about getting service for your Acers in other countries because of this “submodel” complication do let us know here in Have Laptop Will Travel.

ASUS EEE ships

Originally posted on November 1, 2007 @ 11:25 pm

I’ve written about Asus’ amazing EEE series of affordable subnotebooks before. It was one of the most hotly anticipated gadgets this summer but a series of setbacks meant delays in shipping the units to stores.

Well, finally the ASUS EEE is going to see the light of day, with units being distributed to retailers as we speak. The prices of the EEE will range from $299 to $399, with colors ranging from the usual black and white to funkier blue and pink colors. Initial batches of the EEE will run on Linux but ASUS revealed that a Windows version will become available by the end of this year.

According to ASUS managers, students are the primary target for the product but they are also going to target full time moms who may not require a laptop with all the bells and whistles since their primary purpose for these units is to go online to do email and search for recipes.

A phone I can alternate with my laptop

Originally posted on October 26, 2007 @ 10:28 pm

I’m about to renew my mobile phone plan at the end of this month and this means getting a new phone for free as part of my mobile service provider’s policy for renewals.

I’m not much of a mobile phone freak so I only really upgrade my phone during my mobile plan renewal. I’m not the type who looks at mobile phones as a status symbol and thus have the weird need to change to the latest must-have phone every couple of months. I’m quite content with my two year renewal plans especially since it saves me a lot of money.

The phone that I have set my sights on is quite nifty because it could possibly become a wonderful alternative to my laptop. It’s the Nokia E61i. What I love about this new convergence device is that it actually has built in WiFi. The nature of my job requires me to always have access to websites and the Nokia E61i really fits my particular need. Of course, WiFi also means that I can now also check my email anywhere I am (doubly important since I have important emails that come in everyday, which require my immediate response). The phone’s QWERTY keyboard also means that composing long messages (or even posting blogs) won’t be a difficulty anymore. The only negative is the lack of touchscreen controls. This would have made the E61i THE absolute best in phones right now. But that’s a minor quibble over a device that will allow me the luxury of not bringing my laptop at events or situations where a piece of expensive equipment may get damaged.