Netbooks: The Best Tool for Writers and Bloggers

Netbooks may not be the most powerful machines out there. The storage space that comes with them is small and their processing power leaves much to be desired. But they do have a lot to offer—specially for writers and bloggers. The price of these gadgets are also very attractive.

If you really think about it, most gadgets build up on their predecessors. New laptops, for instance, sport higher memories and storage capacities, faster processors, brighter LCDs, etc., than the previous models. Netbooks, on the other hand, seem to go the opposite way. The last time I checked, most have half the secondary storage capacity of regular laptops.

Fortunately, writers and bloggers do not really need the fastest processors and the roomiest hard disk. The slowest processor of even ten years ago is way faster than your average typing speed specially if you factor in the time you spend thinking of what you need to write. Fast computers simply waste processor cycles waiting for your next keystroke.

Hard disk capacity is also a non-issue for most of us—even if what you are writing is a thousand-page book. Plain text, which is what most writers work with most of the time, does not take up much space—even if you include the Docbook or Latex markups (or whatever markup you use).

The software we use are also not hardware intensive. Most of the time, we only need a browser, a text editor, an email client and a blog client. You can install these on a hard drive with modest space and they don’t require much memory to run.

You can even get by with just a browser if that is what you want. You can post entries to your blog with its web interface. If that does not appeal to you, there are a lot of online text editors which you can use to draft your post or your manuscript like EditPad, FCKeditor, and Google Docs. The latter two can be used for more than text editing. (Personally, I’d rather have my stand-alone text editor.) Most email services could also be accessed online without a dedicated desktop client. With these applications, and references like an online thesaurus and dictionary, you only need an internet connection and your netbook. It truly is a Net book.

By giving up features you’re not going to need much anyway, netbooks are able to offer you something you do need—a small size and the right price. In these financially troubled times, the sticker is not something to be easily ignored and that of the netbook is refreshingly affordable.

Believe it or not, the size of the netbook can enhance your creativity. You can bring it with you in the park, the garden, the beach or anywhere your creative juice flows freely. Changing your working environment can sometimes get you through blocks and working in the same corner every time is not the most conducive way to write. A netbook is easier and more convenient to transport than a full-size laptop.

So the next time you write a novel in which the setting is in Italy, you might find yourself there, sitting in a sidewalk cafe, netbook open.