Writing on the road: laptop computers

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Nov, 1987 by Ruth Stidger

Writing on the road: Laptop computers

It's 3 AM, and you're in a hotel room in Chicago, having just completed a show report that's due in New York the next morning. The magazine will be late if your copy doesn't arrive, or there will be a penalty to pay for late handling. A hopeless situation? Not if you own a laptop computer and used it to write your article. You simply plug your portable companion into a phone --after you've had a few hours of sleep --and transmit the copy, as well as any instructions you want to give the production department on handling the article. If your office computer is set up to take copy around the clock, you can even transmit your article in the middle of the night, and go to sleep knowing it will be waiting for the production staff when they enter the door.

Any journalist can make good use of a laptop computer--for work that needs to be done at home or when you are traveling. There are many models available. The Toshiba is the most popular. Then there's Zenith, the portable computer the Government has chosen as a standard. The Data General (DG/1) is in wide use. IBM has a portable model and so do a number of Japanese companies like NEC. The Tandy is used at many newspapers.

Interest in laptop computers has picked up since a big change in super twist technology was introduced about a year ago, greatly improving visibility. My favorite is the low-cost Tandy 102 (or its predecessor, the Model 100). I like this model best because it weighs barely more than three pounds, because it's been on the market for some time, and because there are many add-on products that make life easier for the writer.

Most other laptop computers weigh more--as much as 10 to 15 pounds. Lugging such machines through airports is hardly appealing. Of the laptops that weigh less than five pounds--the maximum weight for carrying, in my book--only the Tandy 102 has a number of features that make it extremely desirable.

What will a laptop do for the writer or editor who travels? Not too long ago, I had a computer expert tell me that the Tandy 102 is dandy for taking notes at meetings. Of course it is. But its usefulness goes far beyond that. The computer can be used for writing articles, editing other people's material, and sending articles back to the office. It can keep an address book in memory, and holds a datebook in RAM as well. Letters and memos can, of course, be written on the laptop. I've used my 100 to write two books, and I'll never return to a typewriter.

The computer has a built-in 300-baud modem, included in the basic price of $499. Sometimes Tandy has a sale, and the 102 can be obtained for $399. It can always be purchased for $400 from Fort Worth Computer.

The 102 comes with basic built-in software--for the address file, the calendar, to operate the modem, and very basic word processing, as well as BASIC, in case you like to write your own programs. The instruction manual is clear and complete, with only one or two minor exceptions.

The 102 is ideal for the person who knows little or nothing about computers. First, it's hardy. Not much upsets it. I had one user tell me that he'd had a Model 100 out in a pouring rain. Not surprisingly, it quit working. But after 10 minutes of drying in the car, it started up again.

A hardy model

My Model 100 lives, seemingly without effort, in an atmosphere of cat hair and my husband's cigarette smoke. I do use a clear plastic cover when the computer is not in use, in an effort to keep some of New York City's grime and dirt out of the machine. My husband, who also owns a Model 100 and who smokes when he writes, uses a flexible plastic cover that fits right over the keys, which prevents cigarette ashes from falling into the machine. These covers are just two of the many reasonably priced accessories that have been developed for the computer.

The 100 or 102 is about the size of a FOLIO: magazine. It tucks easily into a briefcase, and can be moved wherever you like. It can operate on batteries or on household current, using an adapter.

The keyboard is easy to use, and the control keys are logical--something that you won't find with all laptops, or, indeed, with all computers.

Another great feature is the fact that if you forget to turn the Tandy 102 off, the computer will do it for you after 10 minutes. Unlike desktops and other computers that wipe out copy that isn't saved, the Tandy holds your work firmly in its memory for up to eight days.

Two factors make most writers hesitate when they look initially at a Tandy 102. The first is that the screen has eight lines of 40 characters. Although I was concerned about this when I bought my 100, it has not proved to be a problem. The computer has search and replace functions that let you move anywhere in a file of copy--with no delay. And, scrolling rapid as well. The screen's brightness is adjusted with a small wheel, and this makes the display quite easy to read in a variety of lighting conditions.