ARM devices coming to the desktop

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 Before computers can be sold in the marketplace they need to be certified for radio and electrical interference levels. This is a good place to find out what is planned for the next devices to be manufactured. They must be the end product not just a prototype.  Giada is a well known manufacturer of small desktop fanless computers in the commercial sector and has just put up an 'ARM' chip (phone chip) computer for registration. It is also listed on their website but no price yet. It comes preinstalled with Android 4.0 but will take Ubuntu or possibly 'Windows 8 RT'. Libreoffice now works on an 'ARM' chipset and I am running the latest version on my 'Raspberry Pi ' without any problems which also uses the 'ARM' chipset. This is not a stripped down version and has the Spreadsheet, Presentation, and drawing packages complete. With the Firefox Browser and VLC media player already working this should satisfy most computing needs. Standard Windows 8 and earlier Windows versions do not run on 'ARM' chipsets, but Windows 8 RT does but will not run standard Windows software. It looks like the cheap phone systems are going to make a push for the Desktop computing area.

2013, Year of the disappearing laptop

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The desktop computer was noticeably missing from the retail shops by the end of 2012. By the end of 2013 the Laptop will probably meet the same fate. Looking at the projected manufacturing for all internet ready computing devices brings the following numbers:

Smartphones: > 800 million
Tablets: > 200 million
Smart TV's > 200 million
Laptops < 200 million

Only one in five computing devices will be a Laptop.

Laptops were designed for mobile computing but the Smartphone and Tablet do it so much better. They are capable of surfing the net, doing e-mail, viewing photos, playing movies or music and editing documents. In fact everything a computer does but easier. Advantages are as follows:

One third the weight
No Virus checking needed
No maintenance on the operating system
Long battery life
Small portable size
Always on, ready to use
Can be much cheaper
Can Pinch to Zoom and Pan

Although some Laptops will have touchscreens these are very tiring to use as there is no wrist support like a mouse has.

Typing on a small screen takes a while to get used to but is helped by using word prediction and pinch to zoom for seeing the words. As Pc's have progressively got more complicated and harder to use the Apple and Android systems have been made simpler and more logical to use. Microsoft will try to come back in 2013 with Windows 8 RT not Windows 8. There is a vast difference but the RT version ( that cannot run traditional windows programs ) is not on the shop shelves yet.

Desktop computers

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Intel, best known for manufacturing CPU's for Windows computers, are now starting to produce complete desktop computers. These will be sold without RAM, Hard drive or Operating system, but come with USB and HDMI ports. Just add the Ram and Disk drive you want. Install XP or a Linux distribution of choice. Next install the latest Firefox / Chrome browser, Libreoffice and VLC for media playing, all of which will continue to support XP.
Tablets are making Laptops redundant but these are no substitute for Desktop computers. It is estimated that over 80% of large businesses use XP. Even though these computers are designed for commercial use there is certainly no reason not to use them in the home. All you need is an old XP disk and certification number. There are a number of manufacturers also putting something similar on the market next month. Unfortunately these computers will only be sold from Online Stores. XP disks are still readily available for sale, new and used, but not by Microsoft.

Chromebooks

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Asus has just started selling its latest 12 inch Laptop for just US $199. This is not a Windows machine but is based on the "Second generation" ChromeOS. This is a reliable system with basically just a web browser and file manager, kept up to date by Google, and used mostly Online. The first generation of ChromeOS didn't do well due to lack of Offline applications, but this has largely been fixed with the addition of Offline document editing, picture viewing, music and movie players. Ports for USB, SD cards, HDMI output are built in. A 320Gb Hard drive is used for local storage. If you use a computer mostly for surfing the Internet, E-mail, writing documents and media playing without needing a Virus checker this could be a good cheap choice.

A Linux Distro from New Zealand

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The Desktop may look bland but this is on purpose. The Menu, which is on the bottom left is equally simple. The idea is that the user controls the items in the Menu and Desktop that are shown. The operating system underneath is based on "Ubuntu Long Term Support". Installation is automatically setup for NZ with the latest Firefox Browser, Thunderbird e-mailer, VLC media player, Eye of Gnome picture viewer and Libre office 3.6. There is a quick setup for "Wine" which allows a great many Windows programs to run. Ubuntu repository gives access to thousands more programs, mostly free. This is a first release of this operating system (1.0.0), hoping to take advantage of the confusion that is going to be left behind in Windows 8.(Widows 8, Windows 8 RT, Windows Surface, With or without Touch Screen).

Windows 8 Laptops

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Windows 8 Laptops are now the main computers sold through the retail outlets. However, unless over $1200 is paid for one they do not have a "Touch Screen". Basically you have a "Touch Screen" interface without an actual "Touch Screen", making them difficult to use. There is a "Tile" that allows an old type Desktop to be used, but many parts taken for granted have been omitted with this version. The more expensive "Touch screen" types are awkward to use in a laptop but should be easier to use on a "Tablet" which is what this interface was designed for. Microsoft have put aside a billion dollars for advertising these to let you know how easy they are to use. These laptops should not be confused with the new "Windows 8 RT" types which look the same outwardly but are totally different inside and  do not run any Windows 7 / XP programs. The alternative Desktop can only be accessed from the Tiles, and the machine can only be shutdown from the Tiles. No doubt some hacker will soon find a way to get around this. Boot up time has been halved as it only recalls an image of the last session on startup. Program speed is approximately the same as for Windows 7 on a similar machine.

7 inch Tablets

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Although 7 inches sounds small for a monitor it is a good size for a Tablet as it fits in one hand nicely allowing the other hand for manipulating the images on the screen. Readability of the text is about the same as a paperback book with the added advantage of "Pinching to zoom" to enlarge the text or images easily. Weight is also a helpful factor as the 7 inch tablet is approximately half the value of a ten inch tablet such as the iPad. Prices range between $100 to $400 depending on the options and specifications. Useful options include SD card reader, standard USB input and HDMI output. The USB port can be used for a keyboard while the HDMI output is useful for viewing the sceen on a TV or a projector.