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Post by tyrednexited on May 5, 2017 7:17:38 GMT
Perhaps I'll forget about Currys for now. Buying shouldn't be such hard work, so I'll try John Lewis for a more rewarding experience. ...If you want looks as well as performance, within your (revised) budget you might want to look at the ASUS Zen Book range. Pretty good specs, very good looks, and the right size for you. (and my experience of ASUS kit has always been good). You might just want to try out the keyboard, though, which on some reviews/versions has had a mixed reception. John Lewis would probably have a sample or two, but online retailers would still probably give you a better choice of configs and prices.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on May 5, 2017 7:32:57 GMT
I have played with the Zenbook Flip, and I like the design and the keyboard. I could have an i7 model within my budget, not that I think I need that much power.
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Post by Hofmeister on May 5, 2017 7:59:35 GMT
I'd not seriously considered a MacBook but you're persuading me that I should. Elementary question: will my Office 365 licence, currently employed on the old HP at home, simply transfer to an Apple device? Yup, products.office.com/en-gb/mac/microsoft-office-for-macMuch better products than paint shop pro around. On mac industry class leaders like lightroom are available, dont forget Mac is for graphic designers. I use cyber link photo director 8, got it cheap in a bundle.
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Post by Hofmeister on May 5, 2017 8:17:00 GMT
Is the old firm still using Notes? ....I've still got my complete Notes archive from work, complete with an installation that still works on Windows 7. Haven't looked at it for a long time* ...but you never know. *when I do/did reference it, I sometimes wonder at the obvious competence of whoever it was that wrote all that stuff...... Funnily enough, I have only just dumped a copy of my replicated Notes databases, deeming them of no interest any more.
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Post by commerdriver on May 5, 2017 8:28:35 GMT
....I've still got my complete Notes archive from work, complete with an installation that still works on Windows 7. Haven't looked at it for a long time* ...but you never know. *when I do/did reference it, I sometimes wonder at the obvious competence of whoever it was that wrote all that stuff...... Funnily enough, I have only just dumped a copy of my replicated Notes databases, deeming them of no interest any more. Interesting, I have saved all my notes archives but have not transferred them to the Mac, wonder if I will ever need / want them.
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Post by Hofmeister on May 5, 2017 9:42:07 GMT
Funnily enough, I have only just dumped a copy of my replicated Notes databases, deeming them of no interest any more. Interesting, I have saved all my notes archives but have not transferred them to the Mac, wonder if I will ever need / want them. It was in case I needed to go contracting (I did actually do two days a week for two-ish years on one contract, employed by the customer to manage the old firm banglore sources that replaced me, and to manage end of contract transfer to a UK sourced supplier.) I didn't see the need to keep old mail archives, but did copy address book, attachments, and any locally replicated technical or process databases. All now deleted.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 5, 2017 10:02:28 GMT
After a company change, has anybody ever referred to saved emails or documents? I haven't. I used to save stuff, then I stopped the effort as being pointless.
I can see how technical manuals and the like might be different, but that's not my thing.
The contact list is different, I've retained control of that for as long as I can remember.
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Post by commerdriver on May 5, 2017 10:45:38 GMT
After a company change, has anybody ever referred to saved emails or documents? I haven't. I used to save stuff, then I stopped the effort as being pointless. I can see how technical manuals and the like might be different, but that's not my thing. The contact list is different, I've retained control of that for as long as I can remember. Worth keeping some emails such as payslips / pension announcements etc, but then I archive these off the company email system as soon as I get them. Tech information is usually out of date within about 3 years, even as a reference IMHO Contact list totally agree keep & maintain separately
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WDB
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Post by WDB on May 5, 2017 16:46:52 GMT
I nearly bought an Asus Transformer T303 this afternoon. Disappointed that I didn't, in fact - but I also learned something about Currys.
I'm on their mailing list, so I idly followed a link to their Summer Savers. (It's only May but never mind.) There was a T303 with not only an i7 processor but 16GB RAM and a 512GB SSD, for the remarkable price of £899. It let me put one in a basket but by the time I had completed my exit formalities (last day at work today) it was mysteriously showing as Out Of Stock. But right next to it, at the same price, was another T303, but a mere i5 with only 4GB.
This takes me back to the day in January when I was so pleased to snag a £500 Fuji camera for £350. I had to move very fast to do that, and the offer had gone the next day. At the time I thought it might have been a mistake on Currys' part; now I suspect it's an intentional bait-and-switch strategy. Once I was in the store hoping to collect my i7 machine, I could have been easy prey for a salesman offering me the lesser one for the same price.
Now I know they work this way, of course, I can try to use it to my advantage. As long as I'm not desperate to have a laptop today, and am a bit flexible about precise styles and models, I can bide my time and grab the next bait before the switch.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 5, 2017 17:04:46 GMT
A friend of mine used to do similar with airlines; Every time a flight for a destination he wanted was shown with a ridiculously cheap fare, typically short haul, he would book it. Inevitably he would be asked when he wanted to travel as a precursor to being told that they were sold out but there was a more expensive fare available..
Being flexible with his arrangements he would always say that the next time that fare was available would be ideal. I remember at the time he built up quite a stock of £17 flights with, I think, Easyjet to the airport in Spain nearest his holiday home.
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Post by Humph on May 6, 2017 8:33:56 GMT
I guess ( or maybe that should be "I know" ) that you will have mixed emotions today WDB. At one level, it'll feel a bit scary, a leap into the unknown etc, but at another, quite possibly a bit cathartic. The realities of life demand an eventual solution, but on the other hand, it presents you with opportunities you'd never consider while in the comfort zone of routine normality.
Sometimes it takes a radical change in circumstances to enable or catalyse a radical improvement of them. Of course no one is going to pay you what you want to earn for knowledge or experience you don't have, so there is often a certain inevitability about the sort of work or activity you'll seek, but sometimes, it can sort of re-boot your life plan.
While it maybe wasn't what you were expecting or planning for, it might just turn out to be a fun ride. Good luck with it all anyway !
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WDB
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Post by WDB on May 6, 2017 10:08:36 GMT
Thanks for the thoughts, Humph. And yes, you're not far off. I've loved where I've been - as much for where it's taken me as for what I've done. It's fantastically international: I've done business in 25 countries and met and worked with people from at least as many again. I had goodbye messages from Brazil, Lebanon and Kazakhstan, amongst many others. And it was only a happy accident that took me there in the first place.
So yes, there's hope that the next adventure will bring more undiscovered pleasures. The one job I've interviewed for so far is very UK-focused, and would give me a chance to renew my acquaintance with Britain's motorways in exchange for the world's airports. I had a similar job 15 years ago, which presented convenient opportunities to keep up with friends around the UK. I don't think I'm ready to give up the rest of the world just yet, though.
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Rob
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Post by Rob on May 6, 2017 15:05:13 GMT
All the best in your new adventure. I nearly went for voluntary redundancy recently - I decided against it at the last minute. Still sort of at risk. The payout would have been quite big having been with the same employer for 21 and a bit years.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on May 6, 2017 15:24:18 GMT
Curiously, Rob, as well as shedding people through one door, your employer is also all over the job boards looking to recruit people like me through the other. I've had one conversation with a recruiter there, who sounded very keen. She's on my list to call again on Monday to see how she's getting on.
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Rob
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Post by Rob on May 6, 2017 18:36:31 GMT
It's not curious to me. They are shipping some jobs overseas to cut costs. The roles are staying. Our team will lose about 10 people and we will gain 10-15 from somewhere else in our region - so maybe Poland or India at a guess.
I hope I didn't make the wrong decision in not taking VR :-)
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