Edit: Apparently there are shortcuts that are not typical on Windows that apply to the Cr-48. I was a dope with my chromebook all this time! I should have known better.
Unfortunately these laptops still have the same problem as the original Cr-48. None of these keyboards are suited for basic text editing as they lack the home/end/delete keys, which would be a minimum for a lot of people, and the entire 6-key cluster still-in-place would be much preferred.
This is the keyboard, by the way, which is identical my old Cr-48:
Making blog posts, using google docs, jsfiddle, Ace, StackOverflow, etc. All of these are a frustrating experience after a while if you are used to using a normal keyboard and are then forced to forego the home/end cluster.
If the difference between a tablet and a Chromebook is a keyboard, why can't they take writing seriously?
These keys are easily replaced by ctrl-a ctrl-e or alt-arrow keys. Moving your hand all the way over there to the arrows and 6key cluster is for the birds.
That said, I agree, google seems dead set on making these machines for "normal people", and that they are lacking in a few ways that keep the "normal" folks away (not the least of which is that you can't just walk into a best buy and pick one up), but not having home/end/delete is probably low on that list. Not a single Mac laptop has those on single keys and they seem to be selling ok.
Not a troll, sorry to not be clear. I would think a lot of people would prefer the 6key cluster, but thats very possibly just my own bias.
I've honestly never heard of ctrl-a ctrl-e or alt-arrow keys to do those tasks. They certainly don't work on Windows Chrome or Sublime Text 2 in Windows so I've never used them in my daily routine.
are all traditional Emacs key-bindings, and they're supported throughout all of OSX; it's one of the very few features I actually miss when I'm on other OSes...
Since macs rely mostly on the 'command'/'apple' key for that stuff (instead of Ctrl), on OSX Select All is just cmd+a, like how Copy/Paste are cmd+c/cmd+v respectively, so it doesn't interfere.
And on Emacs you start getting into multi-key combo finger dances for that (e.g. "Ctrl+x h" = highlight all), which OSX doesn't emulate for various reasons I'm sure...
I did an image search and it doesn't look like the chrome books have the extra meta/command/apple/super/windows key on them. Do they just not have a select all?
I absolutely love the home and end shortcuts. The one thing that does look odd with the Chrome shortcuts is the reliance on the Function keys - that as a touch typist - I find hard to get on with.
I don't know if they've disabled it in their distribution, but Ctrl-A (beginning of line) and Ctrl-E (end-of-line) work in my version of Chrome. Not sure if this is a default or something I've set system-wide.
Not really. I have a Macbook Air, and the main reason I don't use it more often is the lack of those keys.
Notice that all the replacements for those keys in the Mac world require a two-key combo. Two keys from two separate hands in most cases (fn + arrows accounting for 4 of them and fn+delete being the fifth).
That means you can't poke at it with one hand while walking past with a cup of coffee, use it while keeping a mouse in one hand, or otherwise interact with it casually. It's a small annoyance, but one that simply doesn't exist in the Windows experience.
All other things being roughly equal between those two worlds, I find myself using the old XP box in favor of the Mac most of the time. Mostly for the reason the grandparent mentions.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_of_keyboard_shortcuts#Tex...
Original comment:
Unfortunately these laptops still have the same problem as the original Cr-48. None of these keyboards are suited for basic text editing as they lack the home/end/delete keys, which would be a minimum for a lot of people, and the entire 6-key cluster still-in-place would be much preferred.
This is the keyboard, by the way, which is identical my old Cr-48:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/815Dnur3O6L._AA1500_.j...
Making blog posts, using google docs, jsfiddle, Ace, StackOverflow, etc. All of these are a frustrating experience after a while if you are used to using a normal keyboard and are then forced to forego the home/end cluster.
If the difference between a tablet and a Chromebook is a keyboard, why can't they take writing seriously?