I've been primarily using the Linux operating system on my home systems for over seventeen years. I've not regularly run Microsoft Windows for more than a decade at home except for one gaming machine. I simply have no need for it.
When I decided that I was going to write a novel in 2010, I began where I was comfortable: Linux and OpenOffice. Sometime that year LibreOffice was forked off from the OpenOffice base and I switched to LibreOffice.
Never once did I consider using Microsoft Word. I've never owned it, barely use it for work, and absolutely detest it. Especially the "ribbon" - don't get me started. I hate it.
Anyway, I had a Chromebook and I was regularly using it. Also, I had been a Google Docs user since early 2007. After a month or so using LibreOffice I switched over to Google Docs and began using my Chromebook.
I admit, those early Chromebooks were underpowered. I could only open three to five documents at one time and forget about streaming music when doing that. But, I persisted in using it. I liked being able to jump onto my Google Drive, open a doc, and work on it from anywhere at any time. And that includes my Android smartphone.
I tell you all that to tell you this. I've been writing all the drafts of all my books on Google Docs, and primarily on a Chromebook since January in 2011. For me, the transition wasn't so much a transition as it was a natural move to the most portable and capable environment for productive draft writing. Using Google Docs on a Chromebook meant that I could go off to a fast food restaurant, jump on their WiFi, and write for three to four hours straight. When I would leave, I'd still have about six hours of battery time left. That's how efficient the Chromebooks are with power.
There were several advantages that Google Docs offered overdoing anything on a regular laptop. They are (in no particular order):
- Extreme portability both in the physical location and file formats.
- Infinite storage for docs created with Google Docs.
- Infinite file history with the ability to go back in time to specific points.
- Online collaboration with others - like editors and beta readers. It's extremely easy and works very well.
- You never have to press a save key, your file is always being saved.
- You have to try hard and do some odd things to actually lose work in Google Docs. You simply don't lose your files.
- Yes, folks, it is very secure. No one is getting to your files unless they hack your password. Always use two-factor authentication. It's the smart thing to do.
- You never have to worry about your hard drive failing and losing your book. There is nothing stored locally.. There is offline mode, but it is automatically synced to the cloud. Again, you don't lose data.
That was all well and good, but what about the Chromebooks? I'll tell you about the Chromebooks. I've had several over the years and I prefer the really portable ones with small screens and good keyboards. I don't need a huge screen or a huge keyboard. I've had a number of brands but I think I prefer the Asus Chromebooks at the present time. I am currently writing this post on a rather beefy (for Chromebooks) Acer touch screen Chromebook. To be specific:
ASUS C302CA-DHM4 Chromebook Flip 12.5-inch Touchscreen Convertible Chromebook, Intel Core m3, 4GB RAM, 64GB Flash Storage, All-Metal Body, USB Type C, Corning Gorilla Glass, Chrome OS
See link:
At nearly $500, this is not a toy. This is a serious laptop. It has been absolutely amazing and I love it. I spend more time on this laptop at home than any other computer. Its keyboard is backlit and nicer to use than most high-end machines. And for battery life, I literally got the full 10 hours of battery life out of it when editing multiple documents, doing research, and wasting time on Facebook. Granted, if you start streaming music or video, you may get as low as seven to eight hours on a full charge.
I must also admit that as an author, Google Docs is not sufficient for me to complete a book in its entirety. I still do my final assembly of chapter files from Google Docs into a full book using LibreOffice on my Linux laptop. That's also where I do my graphics work for covers. Still, that represents about three or four days of use out of a typical nine-month effort. It takes me a long time because writing is a hobby, not a day job.
With my experience and obvious bias, I was naturally interested in an article that popped up in my news feed. The author titled it "Here's how I turned a Chromebook into a powerful full-time work laptop". I thought to myself, "I've already done that." Still, I was intrigued. From that perspective, I am including the link to that article here as he has some very specific recommendations and other information that I have opted to not include myself.
If you are in need of a seriously good, reliable, fast, economical, doesn't crash, runs for hours on a single charge, boots completely in seven seconds laptop, consider a Chromebook. In fact, if the majority of your time on a laptop is in a browser window or Word, don't even consider anything else. You will not regret it.
To be sure, there are limitations. If you absolutely need to run some Windows program, you need to get something else. Still, I would hesitate to drop down $300 or more for a buggy, bloated, crash-happy Windows laptop simply to run one program. For the same or less money, you could have a machine that you simply use and don't have to be a part-time system administrator to keep it running.
So, to sum up. What are the benefits of a Chromebook? I'm glad you asked.
- Fast boot. Chromebooks typically boot in seven seconds. All the way. Not like Windows fake booting to the login screen while still booting in the background.
- 8+ hour battery life.
- Economical. You can get a very capable new Chromebook for less than $250 and be happy. Not feel like you settled.
- Self-maintaining. Updates are practically invisible. Every now and then you see a notice that you should restart to complete the update. If you want. It's not like Windows.
- Very easy to use. It's a browser. That's what it is. A browser. Everyone knows how to use a browser.
- Fanless, diskless, and super quiet. There are no moving parts to wear out other than the keyboard. I've changed one of those out of five Chromebooks used by the family.
- You get work done while others are staring at their Windows laptop waiting for updates or trying to figure out why it locked up again.
There it is. My reasons for owning a Chromebook. I use mine every day. My writing process would be so inefficient if I were to be stuck on a traditional laptop with traditional software. I couldn't imagine being so chained down to specific equipment and locations.
I hope you found this post informative and intriguing. I truly believe that anyone that gets a Chromebook, even as a second machine, will not be disappointed provided they understand what they are getting. Come to think of it, I think Mac lovers would be disappointed anyway. It doesn't operate like a Mac and that typically irritates Mac lovers.
Full disclosure, I used a Mac at work for three years. It was a great machine. It was not as nice as my current Chromebook.
No comments:
Post a Comment