Typing Issues?
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Does anyone here program on a laptop? I'm wondering if it's good or bad for programming. I have tendinitis in my wrists (from what I assume is constantly typing. And I'm wondering what I could do to reduce any future issues when programming and just typing in general. It's probably going to be something I like to minimize on because of potential data entry employment and I've been told about it being relative to wrist injuries and strains because of poor positioning, etc. Does anyone have any tips and/or recommendations? That would be great. I'm a little discouraged from programming because I get an idea and can't type it out because of pain and it's stalled my progress of learning c++. A position I'm in often is where I'm in bed with my back against the headboard and a laptop either on the bed, or on/between the legs. I notice I tend to rest my wrists on the laptop while typing and my elbows on my legs. I used to bend my wrists to type sometimes but I've more or less dialed bag on it. I hope this helps.
I use a laptop as if it were a desktop (always plugged in, no battery, and always in one spot) and I usually don't have any issues. I do, however, get WASD hand-hurt.
Same as LB. My desktop hasn't been hooked up in almost a year now, maybe two. I live off my laptop for all coding projects and ideas.
Only type while sitting properly on a chair, preferably one with armrests to avoid putting too much stress on your lower back.
Avoid typing on a laptop, as it encourages bad posture. Either use a separate monitor or a separate keyboard to assume a more natural position. If you have no choice, place the laptop closer (in height) to your face. Don't actually rest the laptop on your lap unless you're not going to do much typing.
Even without armrests, your wrists should be held up by your arms, not resting on anything.
Avoid typing on a laptop, as it encourages bad posture. Either use a separate monitor or a separate keyboard to assume a more natural position. If you have no choice, place the laptop closer (in height) to your face. Don't actually rest the laptop on your lap unless you're not going to do much typing.
Even without armrests, your wrists should be held up by your arms, not resting on anything.
Thanks. I've been using a bed because of back support and knee pain while sitting. I'll just look for something to elevate my legs to keep mu knee straight if I'm in a chair. Should I invest in a table or something to place the laptop on since it's not recommended to not have it in the lap? I planned to buy an ergonomic keyboard like these:
http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Natural-Ergonomic-Keyboard-4000/dp/B000A6PPOK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404583072&sr=8-1&keywords=ergonomic+keyboard
http://www.amazon.com/Fellowes-Microban-Design-Keyboard-98915/dp/B0002CE0XO/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1404583072&sr=8-7&keywords=ergonomic+keyboard
http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Natural-Ergonomic-Keyboard-4000/dp/B000A6PPOK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404583072&sr=8-1&keywords=ergonomic+keyboard
http://www.amazon.com/Fellowes-Microban-Design-Keyboard-98915/dp/B0002CE0XO/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1404583072&sr=8-7&keywords=ergonomic+keyboard
I use my laptop as a desktop and I have an external mouse, keyboard and two monitors. I would not go back to using a desktop - the only advantage of desktop is its lower price and slightly better performance (but not much compared to a powerful laptop like MBP or Dell Precision series).
I've been on odds about laptops for years myself. I always thought the keyboard was too small and the trackpad was a nightmare for me lol. That's been the only reason I didn't like using one, but I've been stuck with the one I have for years and I haven't been able to use anything else when at homejavascript:editbox1.editSend()
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| Should I invest in a table or something to place the laptop on since it's not recommended to not have it in the lap? |
| I planned to buy an ergonomic keyboard like these |
Note the rearranged function keys and delete cluster than wreak havoc with your muscle memory. It's like a middle finger to programmers everywhere.
Yeah, it's going to be a while before I can get a computer desk and a chair unless I can find a friend that has extra. The last proper one I had got ruined because someone heavy fell on it horsing around and since then I've been using desktops on tables due to no one buying a computer desk. I do dislike the changed function keys. Had trouble dealing with that on this laptop until i finally figured out I could switch it off. I tend to bend my wrists when typing and using a keyboard, and looked to ergonomic keyboards and mouses for a solution. I plan to test them out before I'm fully sold on keeping them
the javascript:editbox1.editSend() is from where i dragged the submit button by mistake
the javascript:editbox1.editSend() is from where i dragged the submit button by mistake
closed account (10X9216C)
| the only advantage of desktop is its lower price and slightly better performance (but not much compared to a powerful laptop like MBP or Dell Precision series). |
Yah being $1.5k cheaper doesn't make that much of a difference for most people.
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| myesolar wrote: |
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| Yah being $1.5k cheaper doesn't make that much of a difference for most people. |
If you want a high end laptop or desktop you will pay about the same. Otherwise just buy cheap desktop and upgrade the hardware as needed.
| BHX wrote: |
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| If you want a high end laptop or desktop you will pay about the same |
I beg to differ. We got a new computer and laptop not all that long ago, and spent a few weeks getting the laptop and the various parts for the computer. Overall, the cost of the laptop ($850 AU) was fairly similar to the cost of the desktop ($790 AU), though the desktop was much faster then a laptop.
This is reasonable considering that laptops require additional various safeties and things to prevent damage from moving around, which desktops don't require. Hence, similar CPUs (for example) for a laptop and a desktop will be fairly different in performance.
$60 AU difference still puts them in the "about the same" range for me. I mean the difference makes it so you could buy a game if you wanted, but not a huge jump of $1.5k like myesolar said. I bought my laptop for $640US and my desktop for $590US ($50US difference) (both mine are 8 years old and still serve my purposes just fine). I don't stress over getting high end computers, but every time I price them the ones I'm interested in are usually only a small difference in prices between laptop and desktop.
Speaking of which, (as I said near the start of the thread) my desktop has been unhooked for ~2 years now (as I unhooked it when I brought my son home 2 years ago) so I don't know the status of it (ie if it will even boot up) and my laptop is getting to where it overheats just watching videos (ie the gameplay vids from indie games) to where it shuts off on me and has to cool down. So before it is over I will likely have to either get my desktop back out or try and find a decent computer (will let me program) for a low price.
Speaking of which, (as I said near the start of the thread) my desktop has been unhooked for ~2 years now (as I unhooked it when I brought my son home 2 years ago) so I don't know the status of it (ie if it will even boot up) and my laptop is getting to where it overheats just watching videos (ie the gameplay vids from indie games) to where it shuts off on me and has to cool down. So before it is over I will likely have to either get my desktop back out or try and find a decent computer (will let me program) for a low price.
You misunderstood my point. I meant that though the desktop was very similar in price to the laptop, the desktop was much more powerful (similar in level to a laptop costing twice as much). Though, now that I think more about it, its probably more due to the fact that you have to get prebuilt laptops but you can collect parts and hook them together for a desktop, meaning that in the long run the desktop will be more powerful and cheaper than a laptop due to you being able to simply swap out parts as they get outdated, which is impossible for most laptops.
| NT3 wrote: |
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| You misunderstood my point. |
I see what happened. You made a counterpoint, but it was a counterpoint to something I wasn't even talking about. I was just commenting that the price differences usually aren't as drastic as the $1.5k. I wasn't even commenting on the performance difference of the two.
| I was just commenting that the price differences usually aren't as drastic as the $1.5k. I wasn't even commenting on the performance difference of the two. |
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA3DC17C7786
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229511
And here's another one that's $200 more expensive (BTW, the specs are worse than the desktop's):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834258946
Yah being $1.5k cheaper doesn't make that much of a difference for most people. |
For professionals it doesn't matter. They don't pay for it anyways - the company pays for it. And even if they do, it is a small fraction of monthly compensation, and you don't buy a new computer every month, do you?
By having a laptop with LTE/HSPA+ modem I can take my work anywhere and I don't need to synchronize anything nor keep valuable private stuff in the cloud.
There is no point in comparing prices when specs differ. And there is no point comparing specs if prices differ. High-end laptops offer similar customizability and performance to high end desktops (I can upgrade RAM, upgrade HDD, replace external graphics etc.), only cost $1.5k-$2k more. For me, added mobility is worth its price.
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closed account (10X9216C)
| Then the comparison is completely meaningless. Here's a laptop that's 2% the price of a desktop: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA3DC17C7786 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229511 And here's another one that's $200 more expensive (BTW, the specs are worse than the desktop's): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834258946 |
That GPU in that desktop is $1000 alone, that's not top of the line that's just being a fucking monster. There exists no laptop that can compare to that GPU's performance, that's why i was leaving it out, you can easily buy a $200 GPU that will still outperform or be equivalent to any laptop GPU out there, while you overpay 2-3 times as much for the laptop GPU.
| I bought my laptop for $640US and my desktop for $590US ($50US difference) (both mine are 8 years old and still serve my purposes just fine). I don't stress over getting high end computers, but every time I price them the ones I'm interested in are usually only a small difference in prices between laptop and desktop. |
Well if all you do is surf the internet making 5-10 posts a day on a forum, i wouldn't need that great of a computer either, shit just buy a tablet.
| I bought my laptop for $640US and my desktop for $590US ($50US difference) |
If you even looked at the Dell precision series, it costs an extra $300 (over half the cost of your desktop alone) just to get 16 GB of ram. Probably because laptops usually only have 2 memory slots cause of space problems, and not only are laptop sticks more expensive, getting two 8 GB sticks Vs. four 4 Gb is a lot more expensive on it's own.
| High-end laptops offer similar customizability and performance to high end desktops (I can upgrade RAM, upgrade HDD, replace external graphics etc.), only cost $1.5k-$2k more. For me, added mobility is worth its price. |
They don't really, if you fry your GPU, hopefully it is still under warranty because they aren't just going to be replacing the GPU, they are going to be replacing the entire laptop.
Yah if we all made the 200k/year like you do, no one would be complaining about that extra cost.
E: so there's an equavlent laptop to having four of these things in a desktop?
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121874&cm_re=titan_X_nvidia-_-14-121-874-_-Product
Yah, i don't think so. What's dropping 10k on a desktop you'll never ever have to replace, right?
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| That GPU in that desktop is $1000 alone, that's not top of the line that's just being a fucking monster. There exists no laptop that can compare to that GPU's performance, that's why i was leaving it out, you can easily buy a $200 GPU that will still outperform or be equivalent to any laptop GPU out there, while you overpay 2-3 times as much for the laptop GPU. |
| High-end laptops offer similar customizability and performance to high end desktops |
I think computer people are the only ones capable of discussions this pointless. I can't imagine carpenters arguing whether hammers or screwdrivers are better, or cheaper.
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