[ds9]

Thanks for saying that. It's remarkable that so many writers will declare a subjective preference as if it were an objective fact ("$SOME_UI is so ugly!").

Although I also agree with "remembering just how unimportant this arguing is", I'll illustrate by providing a counterexample to the Fine Article's idea that OSX is "an aesthetically pleasing OS". My idea of an esthetically pleasing UI is one with text labels instead of icons, relatively direct access to all information and controls, and a lot less of the shiny accents, animations, forced mousing, and other decorative, annoying or obstructive junk.

I'd also like a laptop with the keyboard in front and the trackpad behind, but apparently I'm a freak or something.

[madeofpalk]

> I'd also like a laptop with the keyboard in front and the trackpad behind, but apparently I'm a freak or something.

Like the Acer Aspire R7?

http://www.theverge.com/2013/5/31/4380132/acer-aspire-r7-rev...

[pestaa]

Never thought about having they keyboard and trackpad switch places, but it surely sounds great in theory. (Well, only for those of us keyboard-centric users, anyway.)

[ANTSANTS]

I mentioned this somewhere else in this thread, but before touchpads, most laptops had either a nub (like the kind that Thinkpads still have today) or no mouse at all, and the keyboard was almost always on the lower edge. It really was great for typing.

http://oldcomputers.net/pics/ibm-thinkpad-750c.jpg

I wonder how feasible it would be to gut one of these things and update its internals (big fat battery and a small ARM SBC, maybe).

[pestaa]

The keyboard resembles mechanical keys in my mind. A bit too thick of a machine, but otherwise looks more usable than what we have today.

[mwcampbell]

FWIW, I agree with you on UI aesthetics. And I like the ThinkPad's TrackPoint better than trackpads.