Adrian Kingsley-Hughes at ZDNet posted a piece about returns of so-called “netbook” computers. Machines falling within that category would include systems like the Asus Eee PC, the MSI Wind, and the Cloudbook. Kingsley-Hughes noted that such machines running Linux have a return rate four times higher than for Windows-based systems.
How might this impact purchasing decisions in information technology at your library?
How this will impact
How this will impact purchasing decisions will mostly depend on how organizations intend to use the Netbooks. If they’re merely for roving reference use, they should work fine as most librarians will need web-based access to the catalogue and any electronic resources. I personally wouldn’t recommend that these machines be used to replace workstations.
Depends on the service you want to setup
In an academic library a netbook may be of little utility since college students may have to use specialized software to do their homework.
In a public library setting, netbooks may be a worth while investment depending on the type of computer services that your publib provides.
I’ve been a netbook user for a year now and I can say that I don’t need a full workstation/laptop to do 70% of my *personal* stuff online (mail, RSS, browsing, jotting down ideas in open office).
When I need to do more serious stuff like web development, number crunching, or image processing for example I hop on my laptop.
Most people I’ve seen in publibs usually just surf the net. It’s cheaper to use a netbook for that than a full workstation running windows – also think of the added security of not using windows!