I've wanted a small computer to take on my upcomming trip but reluctant to
get into Vista or switch to Apple. I also don't want to be carrying
anything very expensive or delicate on this trip which will involve a long
boat trip. All these considerations apply on the sailboat as well.

I've been taking a laptop on longer cruises for track planning and in case I
need to reload charts in the GPS. It doesn't stow anywhere easily though
and I'd hate to have it go adrift given its cost and all the stuff on it.

I'm typing this on an ASUS Eee PC I bought yesterday at Best Buy. It's
about the size and weight of a thin hardback book, uses Window XP (Probably
the last XP machine available), and has solid state memory instead of a hard
disk. No drives or card slot but three USB ports and MMC/SD card slot as
well as Ethernet & video connectors. Nice screen with some cool zooming and
panning features that make it's more than adequate size and clarity even
easier to use. Built in webcam.

Not terribly fast but just about perfect for a small cruising boat and
traveling light. A under $475 it won't be a major disaster if anything
happens to it. Worth owning even if you have a larger laptop, I think.

--
Roger Long