Develop on a PC or a Laptop?

[Jamie W]

Not sure if this belongs in game development / technical or here ...

Is your main development a desktop PC, or, a laptop?

Which is better?

For me: I've been using a laptop for a couple of years now. Has been ok, but starting to feel that there is limited screen resolution (lusting over a 24" lcd). Also, processing power is I'm sure quite limited, as is HDD access time; maybe I'd be better off with a desktop..

[Backov]

If you're not working mobile there's really no reason to use a laptop. Faster HD, faster video cards, dual displays, bigger monitors..

All good things for a dev.

I worked off a laptop for about a year, and it was fine, but I was pretty transient at the time. Now that I'm rooted again it's nice to have a desktop.

[Jim Buck]

I've been using laptops exclusively since 2003 and would never go back to a desktop. When it's in the office, it's plugged into a 24" LCD monitor and keyboard.

[Jamie W]

Plugged in to a 24" and a keyboard sounds pretty neat..

Any suggestions for a suitable keyboard? Do you just use a bog standard one?

[GBGames]

I have a beefy laptop which I prefer to my desktop. I don't have an LCD monitor for my desktop, though, so if I did get around to buying one, I might change my mind...but the laptop kind of gave me an excuse to not need one.

I have a Dell Precision M90. It's about three years old now, but I haven't been playing Crysis or anything like that. Quake 4 ran just fine on it, as did Halflife 2, if that might indicate anything.

And vim runs like a champ. B-)

[Jim Buck]

I have one of those old grey SGI keyboards that I grabbed from my last employer when they were ditching old hardware. It's a great keyboard, but I also have the PS2 Linux devkit keyboard lying around here that I've also used from time-to-time.

Yeah, I highly recommend a laptop plus separate keyboard, mouse, monitor since you will get the same experience as with a desktop with the bonus of being able to grab your laptop for remote work (in front of tv! :) ), presentations, conferences, etc. Also, laptop hardware is sophisticated enough (and cheap enough) to play high-end games these days, if that's a concern.

[Grey Alien]

PC - I like my MS natural keyboard and CRT.

[Applewood]

The small laptop advantage of being able to grab your dev pc and go is overated ime.

I've done it myself and it was never pleasant - dragging across those silly pointer pads to navigate, and trying to edit code on a keyboard the size of cigarette packet soon put paid to "I can work on the plane and the journey will pass in no time" things you kid yourself you'll do to justify spending the extra money.

Buy a good desktop and the biggest/best lcd monitor you can afford. If you foresee going elsewhere to work, get a USB hard-drive and just take that. (And work off it too else you'll forget stuff when it matters! :S )

Just my 2p

[Jamie W]

Thanks for the opinions guys. One of the big issues, for me, with a desktop, is the size, heat, and noise, it gives off.

Will defo look into getting some new kit after current project is done with. :)

[MacMan45]

When I was at uni I did most of my work originally on my desktop and slowly migrated over to a laptop & I havn't gone back.

Actually I have since downgraded from my 15.4" widescreen to an EeePC 701.
A little cramped, but I set up code::blocks fullscreen & hiding the panes I don't need, and I can get a fair bit done.

A full compile is a bit slow, but I tend to code more then compile so it is no big deal.

For me though, I code all day at work, and get home late (to a wife that doesn't want me to sit at the computer all night), so being able to code on the train is vital to me & being light to carry is a big plus.

If I was working from home (someday...) I would go for the desktop with massive screen though!!!

[Jim Buck]

Yeah, even when I grab my laptop to go somewhere with it, I also bring the external mouse. The touchpad is far too painful to use (but the thumb mouse which is rare nowadays isn't too bad in a pinch).

[Nikos Beck]

I recently bought a powerhouse laptop so I've been using it a lot. I'm maxing out all of the settings on games which is a far cry from my desktop which is six years old but it works just fine. I work in script so I rarely have to compile the engine and the engine itself doesn't need a lot of horsepower. I don't have a preference either way. I keep the game on a portable hard drive so that no matter where I am, I have all of the necessary files on either computer. I usually zip up the folders and toss them onto the local drive as a backup so that if I ever lose the portable drive or it fails, I have backups distributed across other computers.

[moose6912]

I switched over to a laptop in early 2007 and loved it since. It is portable and I can do my work everywhere I want. Since I take public transport all the time, those 1 hour commutes on the train or bus is good enough for me to get some paperwork done or squash a few small bugs here and there.

I don't use my desktop much as it is pretty old and can't run all the new games although I may get a new one once Diablo 3 or Starcraft 2 comes out, whichever comes first.

[Gary Preston]

I worked for several years doing information systems on a laptop, despite been mostly sat in an office. I just liked the convenience of taking the laptop home some days and working from the garden :) Plus it doubled up as a demonstration machine when going on-site to discuss projects with clients.

Currently though I spend more time on my desktop, but that's mainly because my laptop is over 6 years old now and isn't capable of running most of the games I've been working on in release mode let alone debug builds and forget about any kind of shader based work :(

I've been toying with a laptop upgrade though. There's a lot to be said for a change of scenery, even if it's just working from the garden for a few days in summer, or been able to take an additional few weeks holiday abroard by treating it as a working holiday. I used to get just as much work done sat in France as I do at home, yet it still felt like a holiday.

The downside of course is the temptation to always take your laptop with you and never have a true holiday. Certainly something to be careful of and avoid :)

Never had any issues with using a laptop keyboard (at least not after a week getting used to the shifted positions of a few keys), although at times using the pad rather than a mouse was a downside. Still, it's easy enough to plug a mouse in.

I'm very tempted to plug a bit more money into a laptop later this year rather than upgrade my desktop again.

[Grey Alien]

My next PC will be a silent low power one to reduce noise/heat.

[dma]

I just got a Dell Vostro 400 and it's quiet... the fan on my APC Back-UPS RS 1500 (http://ak.buy.com/db_assets/prod_lrg_images/455/204113455.jpg) is louder when it kicks in on hot days. (Which is pretty often now that summer has hit California hard.)

In any event, to answer your question, I've pretty much stuck with desktops since my career with PCs in the early 1990s. I might get one of these though (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25677061/), when they mature.

[GolfHacker]

Thanks for the opinions guys. One of the big issues, for me, with a desktop, is the size, heat, and noise, it gives off.

My new Mac Pro is very, very quiet and has a great ventilation system that keeps it really cool. It can be running all day, and when I touch the case it is still cool. The tower itself is a bit large, though - but since I keep it in a compartment inside my desk, the size is irrelevant because I never see it and it never gets in my way. And all the cables are hidden and out of sight, which I like. Never had that with a laptop.

The 30" monitor is also very nice. Don't think I could use it with a laptop since laptop video cards aren't typically powerful enough to drive it.

I also love all the USB ports that came on this thing. Between the four USB ports on the monitor and the half-dozen ports on the tower, I have plenty of places to plug in my mouse, printer, iPod, Palm Pilot cradle, digital camera, camcorder, backup hard drive, etc. If I had a laptop, I'd be constantly swapping devices. Grrr!

Oh yeah, and did I mention I have a terrabyte of hard drive space (not including the USB drive)? Can't get that on a laptop...

[vjvj]

I use both. SVN and online wikis for everything make syncing a snap.

The main disadvantage to laptops (other than small screen size and resolution, which is a given) is that the video card drivers tend to be shite and a pain in the ass to update at best. For that reason, I don't think I'd feel comfortable with a laptop as my ONLY dev system, for those cases where video drivers might be causing issues.

I also hate the trackpads on laptops, but I keep a wireless laser mouse in my laptop bag to get around that.

[svero]

I work almost exclusively on laptop, but that's mostly because I'm always traveling. I'm rarely in one place longer than a few months and lugging around a desktop isn't really an option. If I had a more permanent setup I'd probably snag a desktop, but mostly so I could some top end hardware in it for PLAYING games... so that might actually mean less work. (laptop vid cards tend to not be so game friendly even when I buy top of the line stuff...) -- I do however almost always use and external mouse/keyboard/ and monitor.

- S

[Nikster]

I use 3, main desktop PC, only really usable in the daytime due to noise and kids being in bed, a crappy 6 year old laptop to beable to dev in front of the TV or at the dining table while the kids are throwing stuff all over the place, and eeePC 701 for general browsy research/reading/remoting to dekstop incase of a brain wave and can't be arsed getting out of bed.

And there's the mac, which gathers dust ;)

[magallanes]

I work for several business (even for a countryside companies) so im forced to use a laptop. A desktop is better in every aspect, power, price, full screen keyboard,mouse, better lcd screen but lack on mobility, also you can do a presentation right now using your notebook.

So if you can then a desktop, otherwise a laptop, or both if you budget can afford it.

[Jim Buck]

For those who might want to make the jump to laptop but are concerned about screen resolution and drivers, laptop screens can now be had in 17" 1920x1200, and when the drivers start to become not-so-supported, the community-developed Omega drivers help fill in the gaps.

[dma]

For those who might want to make the jump to laptop but are concerned about screen resolution and drivers, laptop screens can now be had in 17" 1920x1200, and when the drivers start to become not-so-supported, the community-developed Omega drivers help fill in the gaps.

Yag! 17" at 1920x1200? Sounds tiny. (Imagine how small a typical 800x600 casual game in windowed mode would be given that screen size and resolution.) Most monitors I've seen at that size do 1280x800 max... and that seems about right given the smaller 17" size.

[Grey Alien]

Yeah too fine a resolution and my poor old eyes can't handle it and I dislike using larger fonts as it normally makes the OS and old apps look funny.

[Maupin]

1920x1200 sounds great to me.

I had a Toshiba laptop in 2003 with a 1600x1200 screen and loved it. Plenty of screen real estate for Photoshop and multiple application windows viewable at once. Then the laptop was stolen and I couldn't find a similar screen. (Isn't it great how laptop manufacturers shout the screen size in every ad but never the resolution?)

Now I'm at 1680x1050, which isn't too bad.

I use a laptop for everything, simply because I became accustomed to LCD screens back when they weren't readily available as standalone monitors. Plus I travel a lot between Japan and the U.S.

[Cartman]

I get my best work and become more productive if I work on my two monitor desk machine. I've tried working from the laptop in the den, but that always ends up being wasted time.

In the end, it's all about keeping distractions away while you are working.

I also can't work on the smaller screens of a laptop. Also, since I work with two monitors all day at my day job, it's easier for me to stay with that environment at home.

[Jim Buck]

Hmm, I consider myself an old fart, but the new laptop I recently got is 17" 1920x1200, and I have no problem with it. I think it might be key that it's one of the "shiny" non-matte screens, which makes everything more crisp and contrasty. There is the issue of reflections behind me, but so far, it's not been a problem in practice (this was a big concern of mine before getting this).

[lordmetroid]

I am developing on both my stationary and my laptop. Writing code on my laptop and doing artistic work on my stationary.

The laptop, a Dell Inspiron 5100's keyboard and touchpad-mouse is as near perfection I can think of in regards to keyboard and touchpad-mouse design. Everything flows so easily and keys all keys are conveniently positioned with the right distance inbetween. It isn't a very powerful laptop but with an older version of Linux, that doesn't matter.

On my stationary computer I have a bigger screen, more power as well as a Wacom and running Windows XP. Naturally it suits itself for art but also actual entertainment. Occasionally I do code on it but it is a rare sight in comparison.

[papastiffy]

I am developing on both my stationary and my laptop. Writing code on my laptop and doing artistic work on my stationary.

Very cool idea, never thought of doing it that way but it seems very easy to bring your code with you (trains, planes..... ahh what the heck, automobiles. lol) when you have the laptop.

Personally I don't even own a laptop, I do everything from my desktop. I've been wanting a laptop for a couple years now and might think deeper into purchasing one.

[Surrealix]

I use a tiny laptop (a thinkpad tablet), but as a student I drag it around campus all day and work in any gaps I get, so it's necessary.

It's interesting to see that nobodys yet mentioned my pet peeve with laptops. The keyboard and screen are too close together for comfortable work - when I switch from a desktop to my laptop, having the screen so low (or my hands really high) makes me feel really cramped.

I'm thinking of getting a dock & extra screen and keyboard so that I can spread out when working at home. Does anyone else work this way, and what do you think about it?

[Arthur_Ostapenko]

I've used desktop and laptop systems for developing but currently I think that best way is to use external usb drive with projects and iMac 24' for development in office and laptop only for conferences etc :)

[vjvj]

... and eeePC 701 for general browsy research/reading/remoting to dekstop incase of a brain wave and can't be arsed getting out of bed.

Hahaha... So I'm not the only one here with an Eee. Although I actually develop on it, as well; no problems here running Visual Studio, and CPU and 3D performance are good enough so far for the titles we are developing. And with the integrated webcam and wireless, it makes for a damn fine teleconferencing machine.

That said, I'm upgrading to the 900 this week because the 7" screen is just too small for me. 9" is a nice size while keeping the same form factor.