Resisting the urge for another screen

If we’re counting devices as screens, I have six:

iPhone

iPad

iMac

Gaming/Linux tinkering computer

Raspberry Pi 4 (also for tinkering)

DevTerm (for the tinkering)

This isn’t including the PlayStation, the Vita, the Switch, or the TV itself.

And yet! Yet!

I keep looking at laptops.

Earlier this year I turned in my old MacBook Air and iPad Pro to buy a new iPad (the old one developed a weird lag early on, and stopped being responsive to the pencil. This appeared to be a common problem with that model). Getting rid of the MacBook Air was actually better for my productivity with creative projects. I loved that laptop, and I would not hesitate to say it was probably my favorite ever computer. But I had an iMac I built to last 5 years, and a very new gaming PC, and the MBA would get me the most in a trade in.

What I want is a writing device I can use on the couch. I’ve augmented my iPad with a Brydge keyboard, and that works *pretty* well, but trying to bend a bunch of systems to what I need them to do is a challenge. Also, I should have sprung for the keyboard with the trackpad, but that’s not the point right now. The point is, a laptop would make things easier.

I’ve looked at a lot of options. The practical option would be to buy a Dell on eBay, like a model that I work on at work and know that I can open up if I need to. The druthers would be another MacBook Air, just like my old one. I know what I’m getting into there, and I like the keyboard. The fun project would be an old iBook — yes, the clamshell. It’s a divisive product but I love it. Bonus points if there’s no Airport card inside, and I can work offline.

But.

What I don’t need right now is another screen. I don’t need another device that will distract me from doing things I actually want to do. The thing is, what I have right now works. I’m writing this right now on the iPad, posting from Firefox. It does what I need it to. And while things aren’t entirely cohesive, I can get it to do enough, get the content I need into the right streams. That’s something.

Still, it’s fun to window shop while I’m at my desk.

-donut