From owner-freebsd-current@FreeBSD.ORG Mon Sep 27 21:57:13 2004 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-current@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.FreeBSD.org (mx1.freebsd.org [216.136.204.125]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BB76316A4CE for ; Mon, 27 Sep 2004 21:57:13 +0000 (GMT) Received: from kestrel.alerce.com (kestrel.alerce.com [209.182.219.40]) by mx1.FreeBSD.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 753AF43D31 for ; Mon, 27 Sep 2004 21:57:13 +0000 (GMT) (envelope-from hartzell@kestrel.alerce.com) Received: from satchel.alerce.com (w092.z064001164.sjc-ca.dsl.cnc.net [64.1.164.92]) (authenticated bits=128) by kestrel.alerce.com (8.12.10/8.12.10) with ESMTP id i8RLvBUQ071941 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=DHE-RSA-AES256-SHA bits=256 verify=OK); Mon, 27 Sep 2004 14:57:12 -0700 (PDT) (envelope-from hartzell@kestrel.alerce.com) Received: from satchel.alerce.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by satchel.alerce.com (8.13.1/8.13.1) with ESMTP id i8RLvVik001433 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=DHE-RSA-AES256-SHA bits=256 verify=OK); Mon, 27 Sep 2004 14:57:32 -0700 (PDT) (envelope-from hartzell@satchel.alerce.com) Received: (from hartzell@localhost) by satchel.alerce.com (8.13.1/8.13.1/Submit) id i8RLvUDJ001430; Mon, 27 Sep 2004 14:57:30 -0700 (PDT) (envelope-from hartzell) From: George Hartzell MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Message-ID: <16728.36042.147168.928629@satchel.alerce.com> Date: Mon, 27 Sep 2004 14:57:30 -0700 To: Sean McNeil In-Reply-To: <1096320933.42513.9.camel@server.mcneil.com> References: <20040927111438.GA865@genius.tao.org.uk> <1096290034.23046.82.camel@linux-mobile.example.net> <20040927143811.GA87515@sysmon.tcworks.net> <4158338A.9090309@pythonemproject.com> <16728.33607.716813.703551@satchel.alerce.com> <1096320933.42513.9.camel@server.mcneil.com> X-Mailer: VM 7.17 under 21.4 (patch 15) "Security Through Obscurity" XEmacs Lucid X-Virus-Scanned: ClamAV version 'clamd / ClamAV version 0.65', clamav-milter version '0.60p' cc: current@freebsd.org Subject: Re: Laptop recommendations? X-BeenThere: freebsd-current@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.1 Precedence: list Reply-To: hartzell@kestrel.alerce.com List-Id: Discussions about the use of FreeBSD-current List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Mon, 27 Sep 2004 21:57:14 -0000 Sean McNeil writes: > On Mon, 2004-09-27 at 14:16, George Hartzell wrote: > > Peter Schultz writes: > > > How far off are we from a stable version of FreeBSD PPC? Apple's > > > laptops are sweet. > > > > Except for the D#@% caps lock key. It's IN THE WRONG PLACE and > > apparent best tool for swapping it around (uControl) doesn't work > > reliably and the dang led stays on anyway.... > > Huh? I'm looking at my powerbook right now and the caps lock key is in > the exact same place as it is on my logitec keyboard and my compaq > laptop. Only difference that I see is the backspace key says delete and > there is no "delete" key that kills the character on the cursor. Yeah, I'm an old weirdo [who also uses emacs a lot]. I grew up with the control key being that big sucker just to the left of the 'A' key, and reaching down and under to the bottom row bothers my left wrist/hand. I'm otherwise keyboard agnostic (I don't care where the esc key is, I just use ctrl-[ and I'm used to figuring out just what the BS/Del key sends) but the ctrl key is important. Fortunately, on PC hardware, it's easy enough to get it where i want/like/need it. > > I've been told that the behaviour is in the firmware and is > > unavoidable w/out drastic measures. > > I'd say this is a minor nit that you could get use to over time. > [...] It may well be a minor nit, but they're not *your* fingers that start tingling. It's enough to keep me from treating my 15" powerbook as my day-to-day unix machine. Well, that and trying to live w/ the weird unix environment, which is a pale imitation of FreeBSD and our incredible ports tree. It makes a great mac though (digital imaging, photoshop, etc...). The powerbook hardware *is* nice. FreeBSD/PPC and the powerbook might well be a different story (I could live w/ the led staying lit if that key were an otherwise reliable ctrl...). I've settled in to being quite happy with my T42p. I'd happily trade the parallel port for firewire, and I wish that s4bios worked, but otherwise it's awfully nice! g.