Excerpts from my journal over the last few days that fit the themes of this blog.
Technology
I have my full travel setup operational now. I did start with my small computer, but found myself missing the extra screen and the familiarity of the laptop. So the laptop is once more the primary computer for non-work stuff, which makes it easier to swap in the other laptop after Easter when I need to do some work here.
I didn’t intend to bring my docking station here, but as it was still in my bag I thought I’d install displaylink-debian to make my life easier. I have it running on my other laptop, and as of this morning I have it running on this one too.
I think I have a good understanding of what technology I prefer to use now, and as a result have an idea about what I would like my next computers to be. Right now a single USB-C cable for everything is where I’m at; especially as I have several docking stations which make this possible wherever I am.
Based on my usual criteria for laptops, and assuming I was buying new, the models I should be looking at are:
- Thinkpad X13
- Thinkpad L13
- Thinkpad L13 yoga
- 13″ MacBook Air
But none of these are upgradeable, so I am seriously considering getting something slightly bigger so that I have the option to upgrade the memory later on. Or I might just go down the refurbished route again and get something that will last me 2-3 years.
Looking at the 14″ laptops, the E14 and L14 are both very customisable, and meet the specifications I’m after on everything except for size and weight. The prices to add extra memory are really reasonable as well, so it might just be that we go for something that meets the specifications we need now, with anything else being a stretch goal. I don’t need 40 or 64 Gb of memory in a laptop, especially when I have that in my desktop and rarely use more than half of it.
Books
I finished The Internet Con by Cory Doctorow last night. It’s a really important book that anyone who uses the internet should read. Today I’ll start Dead Centre by Tim Farthing, which is the only other book I bought with me. I have my Kindle though, with a huge backlog of fiction, so it’s not like I won’t have things to read.
Music
I am listening to the new Jiin record, although once I start the book I will switch to Dead Centre by Reigns. I am also feeding Spotify with music for the family playlist. I only listen to Spotify whilst walking the dog, but it’s good to hear a few new favourites making their way into what we listen to in the car.
There is a new record shop in Newport, that has only been open 2 weeks. I bought Dresden Dolls and East India Youth CDs, and resisted buying a lot of expensive records. This is a shop I will definitely support, and will return to again in June.