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Comment by zitterbewegung | Hacker News Reader

I'm not sure why Google tries to make a really expensive version of their Chromebooks . If this came out before the new iPad Pro's and Surface laptops it might be compelling to buy. But, if I want a walled garden experience I would choose an iPad Pro. And if I want a real keyboard with a stylus there is the Surface Book and many others. It is even competing with the lower end Chromebooks due to the price.

It would be a great laptop for someone that likes Linux but then you are probably going to overwrite ChromeOS with whatever you want.

EDIT: Meant to say Surface laptop not surface book.

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The Surface Book is a good $500 more expensive, significantly thicker, and significantly heavier. It's also prone to hinge flakiness with the overly clever electronic release mechanism. You get the nvidia GPU option if you want it, though.

ipad pro is an interesting comparison but it's not just "walled or not" it's also "windowed vs. fullscreen" as the chromebook is a full windowed systems, for better or worse. A fixed hinged keyboard is a substantial difference in terms of usage capabilities as well, so I don't think these are really in that much direct competition.

A more apt comparison would probably be something more like the Lenovo Yoga.

They need hardware to give to google interns.

Do they actually make interns use chromebooks?

yep. However you cannot code locally on your laptop at google. So you end up either using a web based IDE or just using the desktop workstation they give you (locally, ssh, or VNC).

Like, no one can? That seems weirdly restrictive. Is it for security reasons?

Code on laptops is a major security concern for any company if the laptop is stolen. While the improvements in disk encryption has helped curb this problem, it is definitely a risk larger companies don't always want to take.

You're free to do work over ssh+tmux+vim. That's what I do.

yeah. but you can fill out a form and get a mac.

> I'm not sure why Google tries to make a really expensive version of their Chromebooks.

I'm guessing they're going after the "idiot boss" market who will eat this up if given the chance.

Also media attention. Places like toms hardware seem to drool over 'flagship' phones such as the Fire Phone, Essential Phone, etc.

Google Home and Nest devices are also over expensive and over designed. I mean, Johnson Controls has been making smart thermostats for 30 years!

The trouble with that strategy is there is just one company that seems to profit from expensive and overdesigned hardware and we know who that is.

> there is just one company that seems to profit from expensive and overdesigned hardware and we know who that is

Lockheed Martin with the F-35 project? Because it's so hot that it takes my breath away.

Can you explain what you mean? I am trying to extract any meaning out of your comment and failing. Why would an idiot boss (as compared to a ... non-idiot boss? non-boss idiot?) specifically want an expensive Chromebook?

Usually to flash some new expensive tech item around the office in a show of dominance. Then us devs get stuck dealing with the fallout when the tech purchase wipes out the network or something.

Your comment seems like a troll...lol.

I'm not sure how a Chromebook could "wipe out the network".

In fact, if anything, I'd argue it's less likely to than a Window laptop since Chromebooks are so secure out of the box.

I bought one for my mother a few years ago, and honestly, not having to go over and clean up malware periodically, or ever do Windows Updates, or ever worry about her clicking on dodgy links on the internet has been a Godsend.

I'm not talking about a literal Chromebook. It is a figure of speech.

And it's spelled "troll".

Sure, let me fix the typo.

However, I'm still unclear about your main point.

If you're not talking about a "literal" Chromebook...what are you talking about?

Really anything new and flashy that someone in power buys.

----

Boss: Hey dabockster, I just bought this flashy new drone from this vendor we never heard of before. I had my doubts but he gave me a bunch of light up fidget spinners for my kids. Can you hook this up to wifi?

Me: Sure thing.

Hour later:

Boss: Why is the internet down?

Me: Your drone wouldn't stop pinging out main DNS server.

Boss: But it's expensive and flashy and SPIN CITY!

Me: facepalm

----

Note that didn't actually happen. But it's an example.

> Boss: Why is the internet down?

> Me: Your drone wouldn't stop pinging out main DNS server.

... you should fix your DNS server.

Anyway, this is all off-topic. I recommend that you stop commenting on a thread about Chromebooks about non-Chromebook issues, and spend the time learning how to deploy high-quality infrastructure, because your hypothetical boss is right.

I installed Linux Mint Debian for my mother, works just as you described. Once in a while I login as root and run "apt-get update && apt dist-upgrade" on the machine. That's about it. Even when her laptop broke and she needed to switch to a backup machine, I just plugged out the hard drive and put it in the new laptop. After installing wifi drivers, linux continued to run. And I'm at peace since she doesn't know the root password or even what root means :).

Yeah, I tried the Ubuntu desktop experience for them as well.

Unfortunately, even though I wish it was the year of the Linux desktop it's still not quite there yet for the non-tech savvy.

New devices are a pain, websites that don't work for whatever reason are a pain (since Linux penetration is so small, a lot of people don't test it), and overall the UI is nice for power-users but still inscrutably complex and unintuitive for the non-initiated. It's possible your mother has a knack for the UI though =). Which desktop environment did you use?

I installed linux mint debian, with Cinnamon. There is the start menu, there is a file explorer, there is firefox and an email client. There isn't any difference to Windows for a casual user.

I admit, setting up the system can be a little time-consuming. But once everything is working, it is real easy to operate.

If there are any problems, I help.

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