[nzlug] Ultraportable device recomendations

[Nick 'Zaf' Clifford]

Peter wrote:
> Im planning some extended time away from power points in the whopwhops
> and looking for a device that i can take to get some writing done.
>
> Key criteria:
> - weight: under 1kg
> - run linux
> - battery life > 8 hrs
>
>
Dream land. If you remove the 1kg weight requirement (or at least make
it reasonable and go 3kg), you'll be able to do it with a customized
linux install on a good laptop (possibly requiring extended battery).
I use to get 3 hours out of a laptop with a normal 1hr running time by
simply using a ramdisk for everything (flushing to real HDD every 30
minutes, and when battery low).
Given that I've seen some laptops with extended batteries that "offer" 5
or 6 hours, you should get 8 easily (hence you may not need the extended
battery if you are lucky).

You haven't listed price as a key criteria, so I'd look at ultra
lightweight laptops, possibly upgrading it to a SSD. Customize your
linux distro to mount the root filesystem as a ramdisk, and have it copy
/home (and anything else you want to save) to the SSD every 30 minutes,
on shutdown, and on low battery.

If you are really keen on 1kg, you're going to end up with a PDA, which
will have a tiny screen and tiny keyboard, which will make PHP coding,
and writing, almost impossible.

Otherwise, the only other option I can think of would be a OLPC laptop.
They are designed for use away from power. Get the hand-crank optional
extra and you can crank it until your arms drop off ;)

Nick