JulianSmart.com Cross-platform tech and more

I love netbooks, such as the Asus Eee PC, Acer Aspire, MSI Wind, Advent 4211, and so on. They're cheap, cute, and brilliant for surfing in bed. But it was only a year or so ago that not only were most people unaware of this hardware category, no-one really knew what to call it.

I think it's only this year (2008) that the term netbook has caught on. A few months ago The Register asked its users to come up with a term for Small, Cheap Computers. The most popular suggestion was cute - 'laptot' - but the recognised term now seems to be netbook, which makes sense as a notebook that is mainly used for accessing the internet (plus it's closer to the book size and shape than notebooks have come in recent years).

When you think of it, the netbook is a no-brainer. How could you not like a small-but-perfectly-formed PC that can be dropped into a handbag (or large pocket), surfs the web with ease, comes (in many cases) chock-full of free software, and is cheaper than any previous laptop? But it's hardly a new concept. The Psion Series 7/Netbook was a great little gadget, with a really usable keyboard and leather top. Great aesthetics; but it was ahead of its time, was rather heavy and it had a nasty habit of losing work if battery backup failed.

It didn't take long for the Eee PC to be followed by a myriad of competitors. They leap-frog each other in terms of functionality, battery life and screen size, with Asus going a bit mad with a head-spinning range of variations that doesn't seem helpful when choosing a device. But the maddest entry must be the Samsung NC10 with its Nano Silver anti-bacterial keyboard. The health benefits of an anti-bacterial coating must surely be weighed against the potential toxicity of Nano Silver; see for example this web site: http://nano.foe.org.au/node/162. I guess since Samsung invented this coating, they're going to use it on as many products as possible. But great as the NC10 is in terms of looks and specification, I'm not going to be ordering one unless they offer a non-nano option!

Netbooks are great for the consumer (when they don't poison them, anyway). But for the Linux and open-source software enthusiast, the first volley of Linux-based netbooks have been a tremendous endorsement of the underdog operating system and means that millions of households now have a Linux machine. It's almost a revolution, in that the Windows monopoly has faltered and it's been demonstrated that Linux really is a viable consumer operating system. (I just hope that Microsoft's arm-twisting doesn't mean that Windows XP dominates future netbooks.) Of course, this means extra work on the part of the software developer in order to cater for Linux. Developers brought up on Windows or Mac may find it a challenge to adjust, but it's a great feeling to be able to offer your applications on all major platforms, and with a toolkit such as wxWidgets (http://www.wxwidgets.org) it's not difficult to go cross-platform, at least for new applications.

I will be writing more about cross-platform programming and distribution in coming blog entries, with emphasis on accommodating netbook quirks so you can reach the largest audience possible.