With things like Google Docs, Chromebooks are pretty powerful. I often travel with one rather than a laptop these days. But many college students are likely to run into situations where they need apps that aren't available for a Chromebook and, especially so long as Chromebooks aren't the norm, that's likely to be a problem.
The only thing I couldn't use my Chromebook for was for design-related activities -- running Illustrator or Photoshop to make posters or t-shirts and the like. I ended up setting up Guacamole [2] on my home network, so I could remote to my desktop windows box to use Illustrator on-the-go.
[1] https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/secure-shell/pnhec... [2] http://guac-dev.org/
It's as idiotic as saying that future surgeons should only learn medicine theory on Chrome books. Do you not get that Graphic Design or Industrial Design departments should teach whatever is needed so that students get a job in these domains at the end of college ? Do you not get that students often have to build projects in professional conditions using professional tools ? Do you not get that you don't replace most professional tools in these domains by cheap web based knock offs ? So you clearly don't get why selling ChromeOS books to these students is wasting their money.
Says who ? Did you major in Graphic Design ? no you didn't.
I am confused are you saying I am wrong and students in Design don't need more then a Chromebook? Or they Don't Need Photoshop or in design? Or did you not read what I said when some students need more for example Design students?
Once again there are some instances for people in design for example who need more. So the MAJORITY would need more MOST don't.
Are people really PAYING to learn photoshop? Waste of money.
>How are CS students supposed to learn how to use the plethora of tools that don't run in ChromeOS?
The same way they learn to use the tools that don't run on Windows or OS X. In my experience if you go to a good college Windows is discouraged for CS in favor of Unix and professors are knowledgeable of Unix and it's limitations when it comes to running Microsoft only software. In fact for every class that I took that required some windows tool (very few) we were encouraged to use the windows machines in the computer lab. I never used anything on my laptop but Linux the whole time I was getting my degree.
I don't use chrome OS so I don't know how unixy it is though
>How are business students supposed to learn how to use the full Office suite
If you need to take a college course to learn word processing you're probably not going to be very good at running a business.
Word processors and photoshop do not require college classes to learn. They should just be a part of local community colleges that allow people to earn certificates for using office software.
You realize students in architecture or graphic design don't care about your petty OS war right? and you're statement is completely false. I went to a good college and I learned both server administration on Unix and Windows.
> Are people really PAYING to learn photoshop? Waste of money.
People are paying for an education that will get them a job, if the industry mandates the use of Photoshop for a specific professional task it's in the interest of a student to learn it. And obviously you don't know Photoshop, like at all or you wouldn't say the things you're say.
> Word processors and photoshop do not require college classes to learn. They should just be a part of local community colleges that allow people to earn certificates for using office software.
You realize there is a world between learning a word processor and Photoshop for a pro usage ? no you don't. Otherwise you wouldn't say such ignorant thing.
The problem is that you are a programmer and you think every discipline works like computer science where everything is in the cloud ... it doesn't.
What "Pro" Word Processor work are you talking about? Word Processors for Type Setting is horrible and the vast majority of people OVER use Word, Excel etc...
On what percentage of computers running ChromeOS can you install these softwares ? ZERO .
People use Excel when they really should use a programming Language like R or Python or other tools.
They're not paying to learn Photoshop. They're paying to learn to become professionals in a given field, and Photoshop/Illustrator/$PROGRAM are the tools-of-the-trade in that field. To pretend otherwise would be foolish.
If they're not the best laptop for everybody outside of college, then they're not the best laptop for college students IMO. I wouldn't want my kids learning on something that next to nobody uses.
- How are graphics arts students supposed to learn how to use Photoshop, Illustrator and other programs that professionals actually use in the real world?
- How are CS students supposed to learn how to use the plethora of tools that don't run in ChromeOS?
- How are business students supposed to learn how to use the full Office suite, which most of the rest of the world is using on Windows or even OS X?
The "ton" of apps is kind of a moot point since Windows and Mac both also have a ton of apps.
I don't get your other point - you want to avoid issues with Word by using the "Microsoft suite on an App" (which presumably includes Word)?
> THE ONE ISSUE is Printing.
There is way more than just that one issue I think, if we're going to be completely objective here.