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On Wednesday, 11th February 1998, John Kim wrote: > On Wed, 11 Feb 1998, Robert Dewar wrote: > > > I have never seen any trade press comments about 701 keyboard > > problems, and my many friends who have one have not had troubles. > > Well let me add that I'm dissatisfied with the keyboard as well, > and state why. I've found the keyboard to be satisfactory, perhaps because I haven't had any troubles with mine. > - It is flimsy. Pushing on the trackpoint has a tendency to > slightly shift that half of the keyboard, making fine mouse > movements difficult at times. I haven't experienced this at all with mine. > - It is flimsy. When opened, the only real places you can grab > to pick the computer up is the front (too much torque - danger > of dropping), the keyboard (flimsy, feels like it might break > off), and the back near the screen (very thin decorative plastic > material that cracked the first time I did this). When opened, I've always picked it up from the bottom, grabbing a front corner to pull it out enough to get my hand underneath of it (when two hands are available, pulling it out isn't necessary). Given the thinness of the keyboard and the screen hinges, I've never attempted to pick it up in those ways; that seemed to me to be asking for trouble. > - It sticks out. It gets in the way of XJack style PCMCIA modem > cards. I've always perceived the XJack to be flimsy, so I got around this by never buying any XJack peripherals. Note that I don't actually know if the XJack is flimsy or not. > - It sticks out. It's fine if you use it on a desk. If you use > it on a cluttered desk, on your lap, on a couch, or in bed, > tipping the computer slightly makes it rest on the keyboard, > which I've already told you is flimsy. I almost always use mine in my lap; it would take more than a slight tip in a lap to make it rest on the keyboard. When heat buildup is an issue, I set the 701 on a hardcover book and set the book on my lap. This also makes it easier to pick up - just pick up the book. > So the small form factor is great for transportation, but the > odd form when opened makes it somewhat more of a hassle to use. It is slightly more of a hassle, but in my view the tradeoff is acceptable, since I'm in the "small form factor" (vs. "large screen") camp. Chris. -- Christian CAREY <ccarey@CapAccess.ORG>