The Future of Netbooks
There are a lot of advantages to using netbooks. For one they are lightweight and portable and allow for browsing the web, creating documents, sending email, and accessing data. You can do these things with your PDA and with your Smartphone. But with the netbook you have the advantage of a full size browser, a 10 inch screen, and a close to full size keyboard. You also have easy access to your music, photos, and ebook files.
These are not usually the best option for your only computer because of limited size and they don’t have a CD drive. Most newer netbooks come with the Atom processor which is faster and has more power than previous versions, but it is still not ideal for resource intensive applications and multi-tasking.
Netbooks are best for accessing the Internet, creating documents, and reading ebooks. If you are a student on the go, you can take notes in class, do Internet research, and create drafts of your papers. You can also download etextbooks on your netbook and you won’t have to lug around heavy books all semester. You can save some green, financially and environmentally, and give your back a break as well.
As the power of computer components continue to increase while the size is decreasing the future of portable computing is looking bright. In the future everyone will be carrying some type of portable computing device. In the same way everyone has a cell phone with them at almost all times of the day.
Netbook operating systems are being developed and improved as well. Early netbooks were Linux based, which created a lightweight and fast operating system, but it was difficult for non techie people to use. The Windows XP version became more popular. Now most new netbooks come with Windows 7 and there are rumors that there is a special netbook edition in the works.
There are other special netbook operating systems in the works as well. There is Moblin developed by Intel which is Fedora based and is said to have faster processing and booting times. There is also Jolicloud. Which is cloud computing which is perfect for an Internet based machine like a netbook. With cloud computing the resources are located on the net and all that is required is a fast sleek interface to access this.
Another promising option for the future of netbooks is the Chrome OS designed by Google. It is not out yet, but it is based on the Chrome browser and I assume it will be cloud based as well. The Google OS could make portable Internet computing fast, convenient, and easy.
Another innovation that is just beginning are the new touch screen displays. The days of everyone walking around with a small lightweight portable computing device, that has a fast, easy to use cloud based OS, and a touch screen, are not far away.
