Can A Netbook Be Your Only Computer?

**Spice Weasel** · November 22nd, 2010

Originally Posted by sgosnell

The number of Linux programs I've bought on CD/DVD is exactly zero. I have a drive that I removed from my old desktop, along with a USB connection cable so I can connect it to my netbook, but I almost never use it. All my programs, backups, etc are on flash drives, or on my portable USB HDD. IMO CD/DVD drives are pretty much obsolete, unless you're still using Windows.

Even then, external CD/DVD drives are quite cheap.

**cloyd** · November 23rd, 2010

I've used a netbook for most of this last year. I'm not a gamer, use it for work . . . that means word processing, spreadsheets, email. It surf the net fine. Videos sometime heat the thing up a bit (mine is a somewhat larger netbook with 2gig ram and 250 gig hard drive). Recently I started using my better laptop, because it was just too good a machine not to use. The netbook works, but it works hard. The bigger laptop processor isn't working itself to death all the time. I can use it for everything except burning cd's and dvd's, but I am using it at home for non-work tasks, or when I travel . . . it is much lighter. Dropbox has recently helped me keep files in sync between the two machines. The netbook is nice for traveling.

Note: When I use it at the office, I use a standard keyboard. The screen doesn't bother me, but a larger keyboard when I'm at the machine for hours typing is pretty nice.

All in all, the netbook can do for your only computer, but you may not like it. It'll get you by, but most likely you'd really enjoy using a larger machine.

**TheWeakSleep** · November 23rd, 2010

As it stands right now, I use a netbook as my only computer. I'm in college right now and I use it for school, though I want to get a decent desktop whenever I can justify the cost. It's a pretty standard netbook, though slightly larger then some of the other ones I've seen. Diablo II runs great through wine, I used to have it installed along with starcraft and warcraft III, though I don't play many games at all save for some via emulators. I do minimal python and ruby scripting, and while the screen isn't as large as would be preferable, it does it's job. So yeah, I think that a netbook can be your only computer as long as you don't expect it to be more than it is. As for the virtualbox issue, it would be easier to dual boot windows or use wine, and I've had a lot of luck with wine.

**mamamia88** · November 23rd, 2010

I have a netbook. It's not very powerful but it does what I need. I find myself using my main laptop (a 17" hp I use like a desktop) less and less. It's just more convenient for me to sit in front of the tv doing my college homework and surfing the web. I personally like the combo but surely it could be your only computer

**johntaylor1887** · November 23rd, 2010

Originally Posted by LowSky

forget running anything with adobe flash on a netbook

Why? Flash runs good on my Acer Aspire One netbook.

**gintovan** · November 23rd, 2010

Though it's not really a netbook, my only PC now (after selling my monster desktop pc 3 months ago) is an i3 cpu and integrated gpu, 13" Acer 3820t. I use it for everything from browsing to web-development and python to smalltime gaming and 720p video. But then again I don't use Virtualbox or any other really heavy things.

I do perfectly fine with this laptop and make most of my living from it, and yes I am sure even a 12" netbook could serve my needs.

**guimaster** · December 6th, 2010

Hey all,

I'm pleasantly surprised to see that my thread has received so much interest - and because this topic has been so popular - I would like to tell everyone about my experience. My hope is that I can help out anyone else who shares this idea with me. Here goes:

I have now completed setting up my desk with my new Notebook(Desktop) computer. I have a 19" Asus monitor, a Logitec wireless keyboard and mouse set (one USB adapter only required), I have also purchased an external Asus DVD burner drive. As well, I have a USB hub and a laptop cooling fan from my old laptop. Note: The monitor and keyboard/mouse are an expense that not everyone will incur, as most people will have these things to begin with. The majority of people will not have an external DVD drive so this would be an extra expense to consider. I also had to open up my Netbook case and insert a larger stick of ram. This was a pain on my particular Netbook model, but I think most new Netbooks are very friendly for user upgrades.

Impressions:

I have XP running in Virtualbox inside Ubuntu. I haven't tested Civ III or Diablo II in it yet, but I have tested a higher-end Poker video game and it ran flawlessly. I tend to find that everything will run really well when I first start, but if I try to multi-task - while running Virtualbox - the Netbook will be less responsive and a reboot will be required to get the performance back. Maybe there is a way to re-optimize Ubuntu's performance without a reboot but I don't know.

I love the mobility of my Netbook - but there is a small pain having to unplug and replug everything when I want to move my Netbook, so I tend to keep it plugged in all day and only unplug at night before I go to bed. There are docks out there with built-in video, but this is a large expense and the reviews on video quality are always very poor. A dock would also be another - large - expense and I don't think the value is worth the price. Having the USB hub is a benefit to me, as it helps to reduce the number of cords that I need to plug in.

My only regret is that I didn't buy a more powerful Netbook. When I first purchased the Netbook my intent was also to buy or build my own Desktop and use both. I figure that one of these newer Netbooks with the AMD processor and the 11.6" screen would have been a much better choice. (Acer Ferrari One?) An 11.6" screen would result in probably a 100% size qwerty keyboard rather than the cramped typing I get with the 10.1" screen. Oh well, next time.

An alternative option for people is to go with a 13" Notebook plugged into a large external monitor instead. Yep, it isn't as portable, but they do come with a built in DVD drive. They also typically have more power for the price in exchange for portability. I wouldn't go this route, but others may do so if they prefer.

All in all, I am very happy. I would like to run XP for gaming in Virtualbox and I am hoping that I can with my 1.67 Ghz processor and 2GB ram. If not, I can always run it directly on the drive.

GuiMasTER

**flukeairwalker** · December 6th, 2010

I've been going the netbook/desktop route for almost a year and I'm fine with it. I use the netbook for everyday use both outside and around the house, and whenever I need more power I switch to my desktop. The way I see it is if you need more processing power than a netbook offers, then you shouldn't be moving around when using it.