Games, Tech and Music

I'm Padraig O Neill and this is a blog from a Entertainment Systems student in Waterford Institute of Technology. It will feature technology , games, music, opinions and everything in-between. Find me on Twitter @PadraigONeillTw ...

[computersandotherstuff]

The second part in the series of articles about Naughty Dog , creators of Jak and Daxter and Crash Bandicoot , a really interesting read . Make sure to read the first part as well !

[computersandotherstuff]

Choosing a laptop for college

So heading into this I had no idea how hard it really can be to compare laptops . I had the basic idea of how to differentiate hardware but until looking into it in detail I had no idea how in-depth one can get . I set myself a budget of around 500 to 600 euro with a bit of leeway depending on the quality of what I could find . From research into my course I knew I’d be using Eclipse and bluej for programming along with Gamemaker and Unity for Game development .

So the search began on various websites for budget laptops with specifications suitable to meet my needs. I soon found out just how much jargon is incorporated into descriptions to blind the average consumer . Yards and yards of get the best visual display , great for audio and “comes with a free year of yada yada yada” kinda marketing to entice people into buying laptops these companies want to sell . Laptops , which aren't necessarily the laptop the consumer wants or needs.So I resorted to just comparing specifications across several websites such as dabs.ie and komplett.ie

The machine I settled on was the 

Toshiba Satellite Pro L850-1P7

Available on Dabs Ireland for about €570 or €20 cheaper if bought with Microsoft office home and student as a bundle .  With a third gen i5 processor (2.6Gh) and 4gb of ram it’s a decent machine. What convinced me on this one was that the maximum memory is 16gb so if in the future if I needed to upgrade the ram , it is possible to do so  . From research on various sites it’s Intel HD 4000 graphic processor should handle the use of Unity for 3D game design .  Weighing in at 2.3kg it’s not the lightest laptop out there but should be okay for carrying around college . 

From personal experience of people with Toshiba laptops they do come with a lot of in my opinion , less than decent Toshiba branded software, which takes up space and due to them usually running from start up can slow down the laptop. However take thirty minutes to delete or disable once acquiring the laptop this software and you should be fine .

This laptop fits into my budget and provides me with everything I was looking for , and I think would be a suitable choice as my college laptop.

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[computersandotherstuff]

Ubuntu Edge

The Ubuntu Edge is the next generation of personal computing: smartphone and desktop PC in one state-of-the-art device.

Awesome idea from , Ubuntu who develop Linux software . Anybody want to give me $695 to get one of the bad boys ? No ? Damn .

[computersandotherstuff]

Phonebloks (by Dave Hakkens)

Good idea , but would commercial companies ever let something like this occur ?

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“there is a loneliness in this world so great that you can see it in the slow movement of the hands of a clock” ― Charles Bukowski

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“That's the problem with drinking, I thought, as I poured myself a drink. If something bad happens you drink in an attempt to forget; if something good happens you drink in order to celebrate; and if nothing happens you drink to make something happen.” ― Charles Bukowski