Dell has just launched a developer focused laptop. The cool thing about this version is that it runs Ubuntu (linux) and is on a 13 inch laptop. (check out the hardware here) The article that I found regarding this was focused on the Sputnik project. I think this is a great start. I’m a fan of small portable computing and the Dell 13 inch laptop fits that bill. It is basically an ultrabook to compete with that MacBooks and Air.
Read the article – http://gigaom.com/cloud/dell-tests-open-source-laptop-for-developers/
The idea that you can get custom profiles from github is fantastic. Image this for .net developers. In the linux world you can get a LAMP stack and a ruby profile and be up an running as fast as your internet connection allows.
If I think about this logic, I can still participate on my VM image. I do most of my development inside a virtual machine for safety reasons. I can backup a VM image and not be worried about losing information.
As much as I like a small laptop I’m content with my new Thinkpad. With the new drive configuration I can be up and running in 20 seconds. The new Crucial SSD 128 Gig drive is blazing fast. I just updated my second drive to a 500 Gig 5400 rpm dive. I had a 350 7200 rpm drive. I just realized as I played with the second drive that the slower drive gives me more battery life. Especially if I don’t have to hit it for information. My setup has the SSD as primary OS and Applications and the Spinning media has the data