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Marc Clifton wrote: Oh wait, I've got a USB docking thing, two large monitors, separate keyboard and mouse, and external SSD drive attached to my laptop already
You can attach a dock to a tablet just the same. Well, the Surface at least--I don't know about any of the crappy Android tablets I've ever tried...but my first-gen Surface, attached to a dock, was my daily driver for well over a year. Quieter than any laptop, no heat generated, practically no room taken on my desk...I only replaced it with an Intel NUC because the NUC could drive 4K.
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dandy72 wrote: Quieter than any laptop, no heat generated, practically no room taken on my desk..
These are good points.
The small form factor would be nice if it really is powerful enough to run _everything_.
Visual Studio is what I'm thinking. But then, you probably have to get all apps from app store, right?
Or can you just install straight-up WinForm apps? I wonder.
The only problem is that they still seem a bit pricey.
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raddevus wrote: But then, you probably have to get all apps from app store, right?
Nope - that only applies to the new Windows 10S. The Surface Pro's are full Windows citizens.
In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. ~ Ronald Reagan
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Well, maybe this platform / form factor is becoming more realistic? Interesting. Now, if they'll just become far cheaper the cheapskate, who I am, will be far happier. 
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Same brand - different model.
In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. ~ Ronald Reagan
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raddevus wrote: The small form factor would be nice if it really is powerful enough to run everything.
Visual Studio is what I'm thinking. But then, you probably have to get all apps from app store, right?
Or can you just install straight-up WinForm apps? I wonder.
The Surface tablets, except for the Surface RT, use "regular" x86 CPUs, so they'll run anything you can run on your regular laptop or desktop.
And when it's not powerful enough to "run everything"...you can still use it to remote into a machine that does. That's how I used mine--hooked up to a dock, ran 3 monitors (4 if you count the device's own display), keyboard, mouse, and I'd spend the whole day running Visual Studio running in a VM on a machine in another room.
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That sounds like a good set up too. I have something similar with my laptop and a headless Mac mini for the little bit of iOS development I do. The only problem i have is that controlling the Mac via RDP was way to slow over my cheap little wireless router. I finally wired it up via ethernet and it's workable.
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A friend has one - says he bought it in place of buying a laptop and a tablet. Said the way he uses technology he wanted both so it made sense to buy one device that fit both scenarios.
In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. ~ Ronald Reagan
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I guess that makes sense. It just seems expensive.
If it runs Visual Studio 2017 it would be nice. Maybe it can?
It would be convenient for coffee-shop hopping dev work.
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My friend isn't a dev. Much more of a casual user.
In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. ~ Ronald Reagan
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How are laptops/tablets/pads not PCs?
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A very good question.
PC stopped meaning "personal computer" and become something that was just pronounced pee-cee and meant large computing device that you don't much carry around and/or has a largish keyboard attached and a mouse to it, but no touchscreen.
Of course, you're right, your phone is a PC too. Which is actually amazing when you think about it that way. You're carrying some huge computing power around.
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raddevus wrote: PC stopped meaning "personal computer"
No, it didn't. "PC" still means "home computer", a computer the average Bob owns and uses for his personal computing needs. Some are more portable than others, but as time goes on, any distinctions will be lost, the same as "notebook" computers (remember them?) no longer be distinct from "laptop" computers.
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So after several years of not owning a camera other than what my phone has, I am taking the plunge and buying a new one. I used to be quite an avid (as opposed to good!) photog and had always had some sort of camera on hand from my first proper, grown-up camera (which I think was the Minolta-X-700 [^])
Anyway, I'm now firmly in the Canon camp and am going for the Canon 77D[^] as it suits my pocket and I have my FIL's old Nikon kit to px as he really has no use for it - an old Nikon F5[^] with some mis-matched lenses.
What I'd like to get as well is a 14mm prime for astro work but will have to wait as I'll only just make enough off the px to not make this painful
Curious as to what kit others use; especially for astro work...
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Hope it's a nice camera. It is unlikely I'll ever spend that much on all cameras I ever own combined.
I do have a Canon, not sure what model, and am pleased with it.
There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data.
There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.
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RyanDev wrote:
Thanks - by all accounts it is a decent enough camera, one step up from the Rebel range which are the entry level offerings. I would have liked a 5D - a little out of my price range!
RyanDev wrote: It is unlikely I'll ever spend that much on all cameras I ever own combined.
TBF, I could only do this because of the px camera; otherwise I either wouldn't have or may have considered second hand - ebay has plenty of decent models at a lesser than new price. It will live in my backpack like my other camera used to - get some great street image opportunities that way!
RyanDev wrote: I do have a Canon, not sure what model, and am pleased with it.
There are 3 types of camera owner - Canon, Nikon and anything else.
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I have a Canon 5D Mark II. I'm hesitant to link so that you all can berate me about my ludicrous fiduciary abuse.
I don't do much Astro work. I'm more landscape and wildlife (well, as wild as a Nuthatch could be). I have a 70-200 zoom I use for that stuff, and the bog-standard 24-105 for my walkabout lens. I do have a 50mm f/1.8 for my more artsy attempts.
I do have a 14mm prime for landscapes (not the f/2.8 though), but it's really soft around the edges, so I don't pull it out much.
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I've been using Pentax cameras (k200 and k5) for the last few years, mostly for the weather resistant body and lenses.
Pentax has a nice plug-in, the AstroTracer to help astro photography.
ASTROTRACER | GPS UNIT O-GPS1 | RICOH IMAGING
I'd rather be phishing!
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I used to buy new cameras on a regular basis, mainly when I was in Oz visiting my grandkids - they were cheaper there than the UK.
That is, until I purchased my current one, a Nikon Coolpix P520. It has 42X optical zoom, 4.3 - 180mm, a 1.3 - 5.9 aperture lens and full HD. It also has a full range of settings for even the most picky photographer.
For me, I just set it to one of the automatic setting and then point and shoot. I have never been disappointed with the resultant photos.
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What's the first rule of power tools, children?
Yep - disconnect from the mains before changing blades.
Rich didn't - we were cutting up an old sofa bed to fit it in the car and take it to the tip, and while I'm angle grinding away, he changes the blade on his grinder from ceramic to metal and catches the power button. Blood all over the place - but one trip to the local minor injuries unit later and he was seriously lucky. The tool swung round and caught him between two fingers, instead of the blade taking his finger off.
I knew we should have had a Health and Safety briefing before we started... 
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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Ouch!
What do you get when you cross a joke with a rhetorical question?
The metaphorical solid rear-end expulsions have impacted the metaphorical motorized bladed rotating air movement mechanism.
Do questions with multiple question marks annoy you???
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Yikes !!!
Lessons learned.
I'd rather be phishing!
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That happened to my ex-BIL a few years back. Only he lost 3 fingers!
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