007 Getting Control of your Hardware, Part 2 – ProductivityCast

In the last episode, Augusto posed a question for the ProductivityCast team about how we chose the hardware we use today, to be most productive. Much of the discussion centers on operating systems, as you’ll see from this second part of that discussion, about our own choices in hardware, software ecosystems, and operating systems. They’re so intrinsically connected today. Though, as Ray will note, that’s all going to change eventually! Do you have thoughts or questions after listening to today’s episode about choosing the best productivity hardware (or platform) for your situation? Let us know and we’ll try to answer your question on an upcoming episode! Enjoy! Give us feedback! And, thanks for listening! If you'd like to discuss this episode, please click here to leave a comment down below (this jumps you to the bottom of the post). In this Cast Ray Sidney-Smith Augusto Pinaud Francis Wade Show Notes Resources we mention, including links to them will be provided here. Please listen to the episode for context. Parallels Desktop Emulator GNU with Linux Test Drive PC Game PageMaker (Mac) Microsoft Publisher Open Source Software Scribus Inkscape PhotoShop Google Drive Mozy Backup The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz, PhD Open Document Format How to Install ChromeOS on an Old Computer/Laptop How to Install Chrome OS on Any PC and Turn It Into a Chromebook NeverNote/NixNote (Evernote alternative for Linux) Adult scoliosis Scrivener Things OmniFocus DayOne 1Password Andromeda - Fuschia Raw Text Transcript 0:00:00.060,0:00:04.110 are you ready to manage your work and 0:00:02.159,0:00:06.000 personal world better to live a more 0:00:04.110,0:00:07.109 fulfilling productive life then you've 0:00:06.000,0:00:09.780 come to the right place 0:00:07.109,0:00:12.540 welcome to productivity cast the weekly 0:00:09.780,0:00:15.000 show about all things productivity here 0:00:12.540,0:00:18.449 are your hosts ray Sidney-Smith and 0:00:15.000,0:00:20.310 Augusto Pinaud so last time we got 0:00:18.449,0:00:23.310 together we were discussing about the 0:00:20.310,0:00:25.260 different you know tools and hardware 0:00:23.310,0:00:27.990 pieces of hardware we have the windows 0:00:25.260,0:00:31.050 to max the iPad the tablets and 0:00:27.990,0:00:33.719 everything else and but I wanted to 0:00:31.050,0:00:37.230 continue the discussion into how to 0:00:33.719,0:00:40.620 choose because Francis I know it's on a 0:00:37.230,0:00:44.190 Windows machine I am mostly on an iPad 0:00:40.620,0:00:47.250 and you know have access to to a Mac if 0:00:44.190,0:00:49.920 I need to but but hasn't always been 0:00:47.250,0:00:51.660 like that you know and it has changed 0:00:49.920,0:00:53.910 over the years and have jumped from the 0:00:51.660,0:00:57.140 Mac to the PC to the Mac and and 0:00:53.910,0:01:00.420 different things so doesn't matter which 0:00:57.140,0:01:02.039 operating system you are for the 90% of 0:01:00.420,0:01:05.189 the things you know you can go 0:01:02.039,0:01:08.670 Chromebooks and be ok 0:01:05.189,0:01:10.890 iPad and be ok windows and be ok 0:01:08.670,0:01:14.820 and then the Mac you keep on to those 0:01:10.890,0:01:18.479 four and even Linux introduced those 5 0:01:14.820,0:01:19.770 operating systems you can really do 90 0:01:18.479,0:01:22.799 percent and now it's a matter of 0:01:19.770,0:01:25.860 software specific that will limit a 0:01:22.799,0:01:29.430 matter of capability it's less and less 0:01:25.860,0:01:32.159 these days so I'm curious how we can how 0:01:29.430,0:01:34.829 we choose which hardware to use and what 0:01:32.159,0:01:37.430 are those criteria that we have for the 0:01:34.829,0:01:40.439 hardware we use and and what we will 0:01:37.430,0:01:42.689 recommend people you know when they need 0:01:40.439,0:01:45.060 to choose a different kind of hardware 0:01:42.689,0:01:47.610 and we have with us our regular 0:01:45.060,0:01:50.070 contributor Frances Wade Frances how are 0:01:47.610,0:01:53.280 you today I'm great pleasure to be here 0:01:50.070,0:01:54.570 fantastic so as the lead in talked about 0:01:53.280,0:01:57.840 we're going to be talking about hardware 0:01:54.570,0:02:03.060 choices and it's as a continuation of 0:01:57.840,0:02:06.479 our conversation last week before I was 0:02:03.060,0:02:10.259 I my first computer you know if I go 0:02:06.479,0:02:12.060 really really back was an Apple 0:02:10.259,0:02:20.670 Macintosh 0:02:12.060,0:02:22.709 Tandy II here I may need - I may need to 0:02:20.670,0:02:29.910 research what kind of computer was that 0:02:22.709,0:02:31.769 that was not available on my time that 0:02:29.910,0:02:33.480 was not available on my time I really 0:02:31.769,0:02:38.090 don't know what kind of machine is that 0:02:33.480,0:02:41.550 but the first computer that made it home 0:02:38.090,0:02:46.500 was an Apple Macintosh that's what I 0:02:41.550,0:02:50.640 start my scene I went from there to a PC 0:02:46.500,0:02:56.069 and went through the different pains of 0:02:50.640,0:02:58.410 being a Windows user 2007 I decide it 0:02:56.069,0:03:01.860 was time to go back to the Mac I was at 0:02:58.410,0:03:05.220 that time pc user but i really did not 0:03:01.860,0:03:08.190 enjoy my computer and experience so i 0:03:05.220,0:03:13.620 wanted something better so I decided to 0:03:08.190,0:03:17.489 test a MacBook and I really fell in love 0:03:13.620,0:03:20.790 with the fact that it works you know 0:03:17.489,0:03:23.370 when I did that change a good friend of 0:03:20.790,0:03:26.730 mine came to have dinner with us at home 0:03:23.370,0:03:28.170 and he asked so how is the Mac because 0:03:26.730,0:03:30.989 he was really curious he wanted to do 0:03:28.170,0:03:33.569 the same and before I could answer my 0:03:30.989,0:03:36.180 wife said oh it's great everybody on 0:03:33.569,0:03:38.459 this dinner table look at her like how 0:03:36.180,0:03:40.500 do you know and she said it was great 0:03:38.459,0:03:43.410 now he going to his home office and he 0:03:40.500,0:03:45.780 don't shout before this is to hear all 0:03:43.410,0:03:47.670 these awful words coming from the office 0:03:45.780,0:03:50.880 I'm going to throw you to the window you 0:03:47.670,0:03:53.639 beep okay that was a change that the Mac 0:03:50.880,0:03:56.130 brought for me it was more a machine 0:03:53.639,0:03:58.380 that works for what I needed to do not 0:03:56.130,0:04:01.290 perfect by any means but it was a 0:03:58.380,0:04:03.329 machine where I could be much more 0:04:01.290,0:04:05.900 productive and much more relaxed and for 0:04:03.329,0:04:10.500 that reason I really like the platform 0:04:05.900,0:04:13.560 but at that time I was heavy road 0:04:10.500,0:04:18.539 warrior I was traveling over 250,000 0:04:13.560,0:04:23.220 miles a year on 2010 when the iPad was 0:04:18.539,0:04:25.830 announced I look you know for what I did 0:04:23.220,0:04:28.470 I look at the iPad I say 0:04:25.830,0:04:32.340 with the current version as it was with 0:04:28.470,0:04:35.430 all their limitations in 2010 I can 0:04:32.340,0:04:39.569 probably get rid of half of the gear on 0:04:35.430,0:04:42.780 my back and in fact I did pages at that 0:04:39.569,0:04:46.379 time was not as powerful numbers at that 0:04:42.780,0:04:49.500 time was not as powerful but I could get 0:04:46.379,0:04:52.379 by for 90% of the stuff and instead of 0:04:49.500,0:04:57.000 carry that much weight I turn myself 0:04:52.379,0:04:58.740 into a superlight bag that even even 0:04:57.000,0:05:01.349 with the standards of battery at that 0:04:58.740,0:05:03.569 time you know I could last most of the 0:05:01.349,0:05:07.879 day and if not it was a piece of cake to 0:05:03.569,0:05:11.909 carry the charger with me and the more I 0:05:07.879,0:05:14.879 work on the iPad with again their 0:05:11.909,0:05:19.050 difficulties I fall in love with the 0:05:14.879,0:05:20.699 difference on how much how they I was 0:05:19.050,0:05:24.840 working on the iPad and at that 0:05:20.699,0:05:27.419 evolution came I begin to see more and 0:05:24.840,0:05:30.870 more power I'm a bit of history as I 0:05:27.419,0:05:39.000 started off using a Texas Instruments 99 0:05:30.870,0:05:43.080 for a back in 1980 one or two long time 0:05:39.000,0:05:46.529 ago I I was fortunate enough to spend 0:05:43.080,0:05:50.490 three two summers working at a company 0:05:46.529,0:05:53.099 that had its first IBM pcs ones where 0:05:50.490,0:05:56.219 the two floppy drives and so forth so I 0:05:53.099,0:06:00.349 was using DOS Mac then when I went to 0:05:56.219,0:06:02.729 university it was really mostly about 0:06:00.349,0:06:05.310 apple Macintosh's which had just been 0:06:02.729,0:06:07.169 purchased we use them heavily but they 0:06:05.310,0:06:08.969 were also lots of Windows program not 0:06:07.169,0:06:10.620 Windows at the time but there were PC 0:06:08.969,0:06:13.199 programs that we had to use also this 0:06:10.620,0:06:16.560 was engineering school so we had to use 0:06:13.199,0:06:20.460 both and when I left sort of ended 0:06:16.560,0:06:22.529 entered industry the Macintosh of stills 0:06:20.460,0:06:26.099 or Apple machines were still sort of 0:06:22.529,0:06:28.710 exotic so I grew up in the Windows or in 0:06:26.099,0:06:31.139 the Microsoft ecosystem and never really 0:06:28.710,0:06:36.149 left I've never owned have an owner of 0:06:31.139,0:06:37.919 an Apple machine never not even not even 0:06:36.149,0:06:39.540 a phone part of the justification for 0:06:37.919,0:06:42.360 that is only because 0:06:39.540,0:06:44.760 I use I like to test out new apps and 0:06:42.360,0:06:47.430 they in the past they always tended to 0:06:44.760,0:06:49.560 come out on the windows ecosystem first 0:06:47.430,0:06:50.850 and I never wanted to give up the apps 0:06:49.560,0:06:53.790 ...