A Week With A Chromebook

I gave my sister my Samsung Series 3 Chromebook for a week to see how'd see like it. She currently uses a run-of-the-mill Dell laptop which she has been using for college. I asked her a few questions about her experience with the Chromebook. Here's what she had to say.

What do you primarily use a computer for?

• A Reddit Machine. Facebook. Email. Writing word documents for school. I use a lot of word, excel and ppt. Streaming TV shows and movies.

Did the Chromebook fulfill those requirements?

• Yeppers.

Could you see yourself using this for school?

• Yeppers. It is small enough to carry around in my backpack. It feels just like another small notebook. My friends would be super jealous. It would be especially useful since I wouldn't have to save my notes at the end of every class; it saves automatically.

What were the major things you liked about using the Chromebook?

• It is light. It seems faster than my own laptop. It saves everything that I make (all documents, excel, emails) without me having to save them myself. I never worried about battery life. It makes no noise since it doesn't have a fan.

What were the minor things?

• It is pretty. The screen doesn't have obnoxious reflections.

What major things did you not like about the Chromebook?

• It doesn't have a CD drive. The speakers are not loud enough. I don’t know how to use many of the applications (but that really is just my own ignorance about Googley things).

What were the minor things?

• I wasn't used to having a search button on the keyboard (in place of the capslock key). It also only has numbers on top of the keyboard [instead of a numpad] the right. It’s not heavy enough to knock anyone unconscious. I never got used to using my fingers to swipe.

What things do you wish the Chromebook had?

• A CD drive.

All in all she seemed to really like the Chromebook. Since she doesn't do any graphical design or any other computationally expensive stuff a Chromebook really seemed to suit her needs. Other than web browsing she just needs Google Docs to get her homework done, it seems. Now I just need to convince her to get one for herself.

My Favorite Google I/O Announcements

There have been many announcements at the Google I/O this year. I really love what Google has shown. Here are my favorite announcements from this year's I/O.

Google+

Google+ received a huge revamp of the desktop design. Everything is now based on the card design that is also used in the mobile app. Depending on your screen size Google+ will show posts in three, two, or one column. The new auto features such as Highlight, Enhance,and Awesome when uploading pictures. When uploading photos, Google automatically finds the best ones and enhances them. If you took multiple shots of a group photo but not everyone was smiling in every picture, Google will look through each one and create a new photo with everyone smiling. Its really impressive of just how good the photos look after uploading to Google+.

Google Maps

Maps also received a new design as well. Now Google Maps will adapt to what you do. You can click on places and roads connected to it will be highlighted and labeled. Also a card will appear show up with more information on that location. There is a new navigation viewer showing public transit or bike routes. Using WebGL, you can now see 3D models of buildings with greater detail and panning and zooming are now much smoother. You can also zoom way out to show Earth as it currently sits in space.

Google Now

Google Now is coming to Chrome! Just like on Android, you can now speak you inquiry and Google Now will speak the answer back to you, all from the browser. It will also remember previous searches to keep the context of your current searches. For example, you can say "Kings Island" and it will return a map and web search of Kings Island. Then ask "How far away is that from here?" Google will remember that "that" means Kings Island and "here" means your current location and gives you directions. You can also tell Now to send you a reminder based on time or location.

Android Studio

Google announced their own IDE called Android Studio which is based on IntelliJ. It seems to be much more UI focused than Eclipse. I've been trying to get into Android development and Eclipse wasn't the most easy thing to understand. I use Unity to develop games for Android now but hopefully Android Studio will make the learning experience more understandable. One example shown at the I/O was displaying how your app will look on multiple devices with different screen sizes. Any changes to the code were automatically shown on the virtual devices.

Send Money with Gmail

It is now possible to send money by simply attaching it to your email! Its incredibly fast and convenient. Recipients will receive your payment within minuets. I can hardly wait to try using it to pay rent or my half of utilities to my roommates. Its currently invite only and the only way to get invited it to have someone send you money. You can rummage around Google+ and ask some people who have been invited. There is currently a small movement called "Pay It Forward". Basically, someone will send you one cent and you are excepted to 'pay it forward' to another person.

Is A Chromebook Good For College?

After owning a Chromebook for a while and letting others test it out I have been receiving some repeating questions. They usually sound like, "Which one is the best?" or "Which one should I get?" I will attempt to answer them here.

My Chromebook And Me

Lets start with my Chromebook and what I use it for. I have the Samsung Series 3. It uses the same type of processors used in phones which means there are no vents or fans to worry about. Its extremely light at under 2.5 pounds. It boots in seconds and wakes by the time you open the lid. The battery is advertised to last 6.5 hours which I find rather accurate. What I wasn't expecting was how quickly the battery charges. From nearly empty the battery takes around only an hour to charge.

I have been a heavy google user so switching to Chrome OS was simple. Everything syncs right when you log in. All my browser extensions, apps, and files are there. The keys are nice but the only gripe I have with them is they are not backlit. The track pad reminds me of the MacBook Pro. I can navigate around between tabs with a three finger swipe. I can also navigate back and forth and scroll up and down with two fingers. The track pad is much nicer and easier to use than my ASUS laptop. Editing docs on Drive is the same as any other computer using Chrome. I surf the web just as I would with any other computer. When I need to I can connect to my other computers using Remote Desktop.

I do not use my Chromebook for work. I work with Photoshop, Maya, Zbrush, Unity, and other heavy programs that can't be run on a Chromebook. I could theoretically use remote desktop, and I do, but the lag eventually drives me nuts after a while. The most I usually do is set up a scene to render and go surf the web while the other computer does it's thing. There are some web apps to solve some of these issues. For image the best apps I have found Pixlr Editor and deviantArt Muro. I find Pixlr best for photo manipulation and Muro for drawing. At the moment, however, these apps are not on par with Photoshop or Illustrator. I do suspect these apps will become better in time though. Perhaps one day replacing Photoshop altogether now that Adobe is switching to the controversial subscription only plan. There are no 3D modeling apps either.

The Chromebook For You

For reference, most people asking me questions are college students. According to them the most common things they do on their computer are:

• Video streaming (YouTube, Hulu, Netflix, etc)
• Internet browsing (obviously)
• Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• Email and Instant Messaging (Gmail, Hotmail, Facebook, etc)

If this is all you plan on doing then, yes, any Chromebook will fit nicely. If you do any serious gaming, graphic design, or 3D modeling I wouldn't recommend a Chromebook. You might be able to to some programming using cloud based IDEs like Codeenvy IDE or Cloud 9.

Which one will fit the best? Of course, it depends on what you plan on doing. The main things you should consider are price, power, battery, weight, screen size, and HDD vs SSD. You can find a list of every Chromebook as well as more details here. With most people, the decision boils down the Acer C7, the Samsung 550, and the Samsung Series 3. Each of these Chromebooks come with 100 GB of Drive storage for 2 years and 12 Gogo Inflight passes. 

The Acer C7 is the cheapest Chromebook at $199. It uses an Intel processor so there are fans on the side. Its battery lasts the shortest at only four hours. However, the battery is replaceable so you can buy extras. It weighs 3 pounds. It has an 11.6" screen. It uses a HDD so it's boot time will be slower at around 20 seconds. The C7 is for the person looking for the cheapest option.

The Samsung 550 is the most expensive at $449. It also uses an Intel processor but also has 4 GB of ram, making it the most powerful of the three. This does mean you'll also have fans on the side. The battery lasts six hours. It weighs the heaviest at 3.3 pounds. Of the three, tt has the largest screen at 12.1". It has a SSD so boot times will be around eight seconds. I'd recommend the 550 if you are willing to spend the extra money for it. There are better, more expensive Chromebooks like the $1,300 Pixel but the 550 gives the best bang for the buck while remaining in a college student's price range.

The Samsung Series 3 is $249. It uses an ARM processor so there are no fans or vents to worry about. It has the longest lasting battery six and a half hours. It weighs the lightest at 2.4 pounds. It has a 11.6" screen. It uses a SSD making boot times around 10 seconds. This is probably the most convenient Chromebook. Its extremely lightweight and there are no fans.

The Future of Chrome, Chrome OS, and Chromebooks 

I do admit this post is a little untimely. Next week is the Google I/O where changes and upgrades are likely to be announced. Hopefully for the better. As I mentioned before, these apps still have room for improvement and are likely to do so over the years. I will be very excited to ever hear a 3D modeling app for Chrome. There are many ways to display 3D models in browsers already and Firefox can run Unreal Engine 3 without any plugins! Hardcore gaming from your browser may soon become a thing.

Interactivity with Hydra Controllers

I have been getting a little frustrated with the programming side of things. I'm still trying to understand how the Sixense Unity plugin so I can program my own interactions. For now, I found another example project made by redditor n8chur. This was made for the Oculus Rift as well which I, unfortunately, do not have. Nonetheless, I am finally able to interact and pick up objects in Unity.

A New Beginning

This post is to simply be the mark the first step...I guess. Join me in my less-than-adventurous life in trying to figure out this whole game development thing! To start a quick recap.

I've would say I started learning game development in late 2009 when I was hired at University of Cincinnati Center for Simulations & Virtual Environments Research (called UC Second Life at the time). There I've helped make various 3D environments and simulations using Second Life. Recently, however, we have moved to using Unity as our engine. We've just finished a cardiac simulation for fourth year medical students and currently working on other simulations and games.

In my spare time I dabble with a few 3D modeling and game development programs. Mainly Maya, Blender, Zbrush, and Unity. I'm attempting to expand my horizons by teaching myself some programming. I usually find random tutorials but I usually follow along with Cooking With Unity and Codeacademy. From time to time I mess around with virtual/augmented reality although I haven't made much progress in that area.

For now I'll just try and remember that I have a blog and should attempt to update it at least semi-regularly. Good luck, me.