The laptop will remain as backup and in case of power problems. I
can network the two when necessary. Final backup is the sextant,
magnetic compass and clockwork chronometer - I have worked on
computers for over 40 years and still don't trust their reliability!
Richard

Richard,

I will strongly suggest you use the laptop as the primary navigation
computer at sea if you want to minimize power consumption. I am using an
old, tiny Pentium laptop, the Portege 3020CT, Letter size, less than an
inch thick. You cannot beat it for low power and it has plenty of muscle
for navigation, charts, digital music, etc. Get two of those for $250 each
on ebay if you want reliability. They only have a USB port but then you
use a USB to Serial converter to get 4 serial ports for your legacy
sensors.

Keep you desktop to do digital editing when docked. Anything else is a
waste of space/money I think. Better use it to get new sails or something.

Vassil