Newbee Help Appreciated

[newmansam]

For My birthday i would like to get the CNM book from maplin but i have a few questions to ask about it:

1 - Is the office application compatible with office word
2 - How long is the battery life for the laptop just doing normal thinks like word processing
3 - Are there any antivirus software avalible to download or buy?
4 - Is it compatible with Youtube and BBC Iplayer
5 - Are there any websites that you can download extra software from?

Thanks SAM

[utd_grant]

1 - Is the office application compatible with office word
2 - How long is the battery life for the laptop just doing normal thinks like word processing
3 - Are there any antivirus software avalible to download or buy?
4 - Is it compatible with Youtube and BBC Iplayer
5 - Are there any websites that you can download extra software from?

1. Yes - you can read files in MS .doc format, however it won't read Office 2007 files unless you save them in older formats.

2. I can usually get up to about 3 hours of movie viewing out of a full charge. You can easily disable the wireless driver to increase battery life slightly.

3. You don't need AV software as it's a Linux OS running on a non-x86 processor.

4. The VideoOnline app lets you watch YouTube videos, but you can't watch video files directly through the browser. AFAIK, you can't watch BBC Iplayer at all. You can stream internet radio stations quite easily, though.

5. There's plenty of extra software - BitTorrent client, FTP client, loads of games (and you can also play Flash minigames via the Flash player). Do a bit of trawling round this forum for whatever type of thing takes your fancy.

[newmansam]

What do you think is better

Acer Aspire One 179.99                     or                CNM netbook 129.99 from maplin 

CNM one is cheaper

But I dont know Please Help

[utd_grant]

The Acer is a far more capable machine.

1. You can browse directly to sites like the BBC and YouTube and just click on videos to play them.

2. It can be loaded with Ubuntu Netbook Remix, opening up the entire (free) Ubuntu software repository through apt-get.

3. The processor can handle movie playback in mch greater detail than the CnM.

4. Built-in webcam.

5. Bigger SSD storage, or HDD option.

6. If you really don't like Linux, you can load Windows XP onto it.


I personally love my little Elonex (posting from it in the kitchen whilst I make daughter's tea right now !), but it's more of a quirky toy than something you could genuinely consider a laptop. The Acer will be far more productive in that sense. You  can read my detailed thoughts here.

[newmansam]

Thanks I think i will go with the aspire one because of the extra features.

Any Hints or tips for offer since I will be venturing into linux?

[Whiskers]

For My birthday i would like to get the CNM book from maplin but i have a few questions to ask about it:

1 - Is the office application compatible with office word
2 - How long is the battery life for the laptop just doing normal thinks like word processing
3 - Are there any antivirus software avalible to download or buy?
4 - Is it compatible with Youtube and BBC Iplayer
5 - Are there any websites that you can download extra software from?

Thanks SAM

There is some room for confusion, as Maplin are now promoting a "CnMbookâ„¢ Windows CE Ultra-Portable Netbook [...] Only £129.99" whereas only a week ago they were promoting a CnMbook computer which looks almost identical and at the same price, but which runs a customised mini-Linux operating system.  Most (all?) people posting here are so far using the earlier model - which has a MIPS processor and for which no form of Windows operating sytem exists.  The newer machine has an ARM processor and ships with an old 'mini-Windows' system which seems to date back to the late '90s.  (Doubtless people will devise ways of replacing that with some sort of Linux or Unix before long!)

Both machines are limited in what they can do; they are not 'normal laptops but smaller and cheaper'.  The older MIPS/Linux machines are barely up to coping with YouTube or the BBC iPlayer.  I haven't read any reports on how the newer ARM/WinCE machines perform.

The website <http://www.cnmlifestyle.com/> currently has information for both models.  The 'word processor' on the WinCE machine is "Wordpad", which I think is a very limited program compared with the Linux machine's "Xipword" (actually "AbiWord 2.4.5") which is pretty much a fully featured word processor. 

The WinCE machine looks altegether less capable than the Linux one - eg Maplin say that the USB sockets on the winCE machine don't work with memory sticks, and althouch CnMLifestyle don't say that they do say that it can't use 3G broadband (ie using the mobile phone network) which the Linux machine can.  The list of applications pre-installled on the WinCE machine is shorter than for the Linux machine. 

However, some people will be misled into thinking that "Windows CE 5" will be familiar to them and 'like the Windows on my other computer', whereas the mention of the word "Linux" might put them off as being 'unfamilar and complicated'.

There do seem to be "anti-virus" programs for WinCE <http://uk.ask.com/web?q=antivirus+windows+ce+5&dm=all&qsrc=19&o=312&l=dir> but how effective (or necessary) they are, or what effect they have on the machine's performance, I don't know.  (Nor even whether or how they could be installed on the CnMbook).  The Linux machines require no such thing, of course.

The only 'downloads' listed by CnMlifestyle for the WinCE machine are a 'system restore' and a 'firmware upgrade', whereas the Linux machine gets a whole page of additional software on that site - and even more from other sites linked to from these forums.

So first, make sure you know which machine you are being offered!

[utd_grant]

Thanks I think i will go with the aspire one because of the extra features.

Any Hints or tips for offer since I will be venturing into linux?

If you stick with the installed apps, you won't know (or even need to know !) what OS you're using. However, if you feel up to a little bit of experimentation, then installing Ubuntu or Linux Mint shouldn't be too difficult. Mint is based on Ubuntu, but comes set up ready to go with audio/video codecs and so on.

You can read one guy's experience with installing Mint on an AA1 here.

My one killer tip is to find 'Synaptic' before you do anything else. It's the GUI installer for all the free (as-in-beer) software in the Ubuntu repositories. You'll be like a kid in a candy store when you discover it. 

[Lochban]

ive installed ubuntu 9.04 as the second O/S on my aspire one a110( windows 7) beeing the primary and can say it was a breez runs fairly swift and most thing seam to work ok other than the webcam and the power manigment ubuntu have a grate forum for anyone useing  the 0/S and its well worth a visit
take care guys

[dunskey]

If price is a factor, Bargain Crazy, (which is Littlewoods online clearance site), are selling the Elonex onet+ pack for £99.

In the box you'll find:
Elonex ONEt+
User Manual
Retractable USB Mouse
1GB USB Wrist Vault
Earphones / Mic
Neoprene Slip Case
USB Multi-Memory Card Reader

http://www.bargaincrazy.com/epages/BargainCrazy.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/BargainCrazy/Products/F040149T/SubProducts/F040149T01S

[Freddie43]

newmansam - you bought it yet?

I started off with a 'Grade B' CnM from Maplin, but despite the really useful mix of s/w it had a number of problems because they hadn't reloaded it and I couldn't be bothered, so I sent it back and bought an Acer Aspire One (see below) - which is a lovely machine, but larger, heavier and has a pretty hopeless forum.

I have been very impressed with this forum, so I kept an eye open on eBay for a cheap 'new' CnM and one finally popped up, so here I am back again! And I quickly got online on the move with Vodafone TopUp and Go Mobile Broadband - something no one seems to have been able to do on the Acer. It was this forum that ironed out the (one) quirk in connecting. The Acer forum hasn't a clue, so that says it all for me!

Anyway if you want to press ahead with an Acer Aspire One I bought mine from http://www.acerdirect.co.uk/asp/versions.asp?rewrite=Grade_A1_Acer_Aspire_ONE_A110-AW_-_512MB_-_8GB_-_White_-_A1-LU.S020A.089&pagetype=version&page=

It was a grade A1 recon model - but not a mark on it, and a clean new system. The cardboard box was a bit battered, but who cares. Had it a few months now and I am really pleased. I've got the solid state model - nice and rugged - you can even use it on the bus without fear of damaging the disk (it hasn't got one!). Don't pay the extra for the recovery DVD - it comes in the box!

[Artus Irbe]

My one killer tip is to find 'Synaptic' before you do anything else. It's the GUI installer for all the free (as-in-beer) software in the Ubuntu repositories. You'll be like a kid in a candy store when you discover it. 

Ah yes, using EEEBuntu on my, errr, EEE (duh!) after ******* my xp up, the Ubuntu repos were like OMFG WTH! My beloved simutrans could be downloaded in a flash, abiword (for the LLL compatablity), GUNmeric, all sorts of gizmos that make linux so damn good.

Definatly give an Ubuntu based linux distro a go because its fantastic, easy to use, and more graphically helpful that windows imo. I only need windows for VB now, during collage. Apart from that, Linux on the netbook is far better. Faster than Win, Easier to use than Win and smaller (on the whole) than Win meaning more of that precious SSD is kept free for useless stuff we like to install!