Workflow changes

Having to amend my workflow a bit at the moment, thanks to the current COVID-19 impact. I'd got the iMac restored and installed on the Mac mini, which is lovely. Currently on Mojave as I'm trying to decide whether I'm happy to lose the various apps which haven't made the 64-bit jump.

However, access to the Mac mini is a bit restricted; Jill is using the office/spare room to work from, and that means that she is set up with another computer connected to the monitor through a switcher, and has all her paperwork there. I can get to use the desk in the evenings, but it's not quite as simple as it was.

As I'm starting to travel with work, I'd mulled over getting a secondhand MacBook, but ultimately decided against it due to the cost of a decent model. My 2008 unibody aluminium MacBook is lovely, but struggles for battery life and is huge. I don't want to lug it around. The other reason to delay on a Mac is the transition to ARM processors aka 'Apple Silicon'; I think I've bought my last Intel chipped Mac.

I'm eyeing up a better Chromebook, with a 13" form factor. Current favourite is the Asus C434, which puts a 14" Full HD screen in a 13" form factor. It's about 3x faster on benchmarks than my stalwart Lenovo N23 Yoga. I'd considered a Lenovo Ideabook Duet (a Chromebook tablet with a clip-on keyboard  a bit like the iPad) but it's really too small for what I want to do.

So what do I want to do with the Chromebook? I want to use it to write with, to do some surfing, and to join in and run online games using VTTs (virtual table tops) like Roll20, Foundry and Let's Role. Discord is sorted via the Android app. The N23 will do this, but can get a bit sluggish and the screen is only 1366 x 768, which leaves it wanting for running games. Perfectly useable for playing if you push the resolution up virtually. I'll make a decision at the end of the summer, after a break on what I'm getting. It needs to have everything I need when away from home, as I'll be running Curse of Strahd from September.

Anyway, the limited access to the Mac mini means that I will primarily use it for layout work and some editing at the weekend (I'm typing on it at the moment), rather than as my primary machine. It also means that - rather than Ulysses or Scrivener - some of the projects will move onto Google Docs. I did this with Lyonesse and it worked fine. I love the all-in-one approach of Scrivener, but that will have to wait.

16th August 2020