Our newest toy ...

The netbook - after all the years of 'bigger is better' in computers, we've stepped down to an 8.9" screen netbook. The trusty laptop has been a constant companion while travelling - dumping pictures from the camera, emailing, checking up on the latest news from family and the world, even working on report cards. With 'Streets and Trips' and 'Autoroute' and a GPS stuck on the dash, we've navigated our way through Canada, the U.S., Sweden, Norway and Denmark. We now have navigation charts for all waterways in the United States and the St. Lawrence River and the Rideau Canal System so a small laptop was a logical alternative to a GPS navigation system for boating. We use the SeaClear chart-reading program.The most expensive 'amateur' GPS systems have a 7" screen, so a 9" screen on a laptop which would also serve our computing needs is a luxury.


After a fair amount of investigation, we decided to go with the Acer Aspire One Netbook. I found the HP netbook appealing (I have had only GREAT experiences with HP) but the extra HDD size (160GB vs 60GB) and the lack of speakers in the HP made our decision for us. The lack of a CD/DVD drive in netbooks is somewhat of a pain for installing software, but memory sticks seem to be filling the gap so far. Update ... just figured out how to share the DVD drive on another networked computer.

Skype has been installed and the built-in webcam and microphone seem to work fine so we're good-to-go in that department.


Speaking of 'phone', we cut the cord with Bell this week. We're now VOC with our cable provider Cogeco - unlimited long-distance any time of day in Canada and the U.S. and exceptional rates abroad (2 cents per minute to most countries!!) We have hesitated to leave Ma Bell, but were tired of the surprises when the bill came. So far, we've seen no difference except a $30 per month saving.