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Choice of laptop

At the end of August 2022, my laptop died: I spilled a drink in it. I ordered a new machine, basically a newer version of the model I had: a Dell XPS13, this time the 9315. It is the third Dell XPS 13-inch model I own.

I wanted a Linux-friendly machine with a user-friendly setup.

Why Dell?

I have good experiences with Dell over the last 20-something years.

  • I can order a laptop with Ubuntu preinstalled, and know they have the right drivers (most of the time, not always, but this time everything seems to work), and not pay for a Windows license. Usually the Ubuntu version is a bit old, but upgrading has always been possible.

  • This time, the first machine they sent died in the first two weeks (first time that happened to me). I spoke to a technical support staff member, but when the symptoms were clear (even lockups in the BIOS setup) they sent a replacement machine in no time.

  • My experience with other suppliers has been worse: features that don't work under Linux, and \"you're on your own\". There are some interesting contenders (such as, this time, Framework^, much more repair/upgrade-friendly), but I value good experiences (and lighter weight) as well.

Why Ubuntu?

I switched to Ubuntu a long time ago, to have a developer machine that was closer to the web server setup I use most.

  • Ubuntu was quite consumer-oriented, with user-friendliness in mind, making the interface and maintenance a lot easier. They include \"unavoidable proprietary software\" (such as Skype, Spotify).

  • The underlying Gnome desktop has since picked up, so the deviations in Ubuntu become more and more annoying.

  • I switched to Gnome 3, which to me was a leap forward for Gnome and its focus. At the same time, Ubuntu's own version of the desktop was becoming more of a nuisance.

  • Every time I try Wayland, something bites me, so I am still working with X for windowing. Fun fact: it is what I worked with on Sun workstations at university, some 30+ years ago...

Mac, maybe?

I had a loan laptop from a colleague, a slightly older Macbook. It worked for most of my immediate needs.

However, I also quickly learned about things that are not standard on Mac (either), such as plenty of keyboard shortcuts for common operations. Within a day, I was installing additional software to organise windows with key combinations, get my docking station to work with my external screens, and so on.

Simple things, like going to the beginning or end of a line in a terminal window, turned out to require configuration or add-ons.

It helped me appreciate the keyboard-centric configuration I had, and spurred me along to document it. It also made me glad I did not pick the 2-in-1 option with \"virtual functions keys\": I need the tactile feedback for crucial keys like Esc or volume up/down.