bgrier
on - last edited on by
ElizabethS
But as I worked through the install process, I started thinking about how my desktop environment has evolved over time, and how this evolution has improved almost everything about my home computing experience. Allow me to explain.
The biggest improvement has to be LCD monitors. My last large screen monitor was a huge beige block that took over half of my desktop,precariously hanging over the back half of my desk so that I had enough room for a keyboard and mouse. Though I would have loved a multi-monitor setup, one was enough -- I had no room for another behemoth, and it ran hot. I was sure I was getting sunburn from the screen.
I now have a dual ( 22" ) LCD monitor setup, and because LCDs are so thin, I have much more desktop space. Power consumption is down too. And I no-longer need to wear lead-lined undies whilst working.
Broadband at home.
My neighbourhood isn't blessed with fibre-optic communication cables. We have good old-fashioned copper. A handful of years ago we made the leap from dial-up to DSL.
OMG. The world opened up. Waiting for downloads was now a thing of the past. Heck, we could even take a phone call and be online at the same time. And streaming media...was now actually practical.
Broadband at home also opened up access to the next category...
Though it now has the sexy buzzword 'Cloud-Computing', in reality we now have access to distributed/centralized computing. Some folk may liken this to the 'mainframe' model from 'back in the day'.
Using a centralized application means that I can work on this post from any hardware that can access the application.
Google Docs, for example, lets me edit from home on my laptop, save it (to the cloud), and pick up working on it from an Internet café or friend's computer, or my iPhone...etc. I'm no longer tied to one computer, operating system, or word-processing application. My work is available to me more conveniently.
And I'm no longer relying on less-reliable magnetic storage media, or having to remember to carry around a USB drive copy of my work.
It also means that I have less excuses available to me as deadline approaches.
As well, as you'll have likely read before, I'm a huge fan of backups. Broadband at home now enables live, online backups using applications like Mozy. There's nothing better than having your vital information safely and securely stored, yet conveniently available should a problem happen. I'm still finding (and destroying) stacks of backup CDs and DVDs from the 90s.
And speaking of media...
Storage media keeps getting more affordable
The cost/meg of data storage is pretty cheap these days. I can't remember the last time I actually got close to filling a hard drive.
Media prices are so low, in fact, that you can easily set up a simple home backup solution by purchasing USB drive enclosure and dropping in a hard drive to use as your backup device. It's basically what I do - every week I swap out the drive for a fresh one and store it off-site. It's simple, which means I'll use it 
So, what have I missed? What innovations in desktop tech. has made your life easier?
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